Restaurant groups faced a ‘challenging’ month that was compounded by the timing of Easter, as trading in March 2024 was inflated by the long holiday weekend that this year fell in April.
By contrast, pub groups benefitted from periods of bright weather this March, as well events including Mother’s Day and St Patrick’s Day, leading to a 3.6% uplift in like-for-like sales.
It marks the fourth month in a row the pub segment has outperformed restaurants.
The Tracker — produced by CGA by NIQ in partnership with RSM UK — shows managed groups’ like-for-like sales across all eating-out and drinking-out channels were down by 0.6% in March.
It follows a 1.3% year-on-year decline in sales in January and growth of just 0.1% in February, suggesting consumers remain cautious about their spending.
Bar sales over the month were down by 9.2%, extending a long run of negative numbers, while the on-the-go channel achieved fractional growth of 0.1%.
Total sales across all channels — including at venues opened by groups in the last 12 months — were 1.8% ahead of March 2024.
This is below the UK’s wider rate of inflation of 2.6% in March 2025, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index.
Better weather in the south of England meant trading was slightly better in London than elsewhere in March.
Groups’ sales inside the M25 were ahead by 1.1% year-on-year, but further afield they were 1.1% behind.
“It’s clear that patchy consumer confidence is compromising spending in hospitality,” says Karl Chessell, director - hospitality operators and food, EMEA at CGA by NIQ.
“However, a bright March for pubs suggests people are still going out in good numbers, especially when there are special occasions to celebrate, and the Easter weekend should make for more favourable comparisons in April.
“Nevertheless, with operators’ costs rising again this month and wider economic concerns mounting, the trading environment is likely to remain challenging throughout the second quarter.”