Almost 12000 licensed establishments have been permanently closed since early 2020

According to a report released last Friday, almost 12,000 bars, pubs and restaurants in the UK have closed since December 2019, equivalent to about 30 a day, and that should increase rapidly in the coming months.

With 4.170 new venues added since December 2019, the loss of 11,894 venues will almost trigger three closures for each new opening, generating a net loss of 7,724 rooms.

The report also warns that the number of permanent closures are likely to soar as the impact of trade restrictions - including a disastrous December trading slide - takes its toll.

While the sector has a roadmap for reopening, studies conducted for the monitor indicate that the gain from free trade will be limited from mid-April.

Much less than half (43.2%) of pubs, bars and restaurants in England have outdoor areas, and whilst food pubs (78.4%) and community bars (71.0%) have higher numbers (25.6%), they are significantly lower in the main roads and casual dining restaurants (11.4%).

The annihilation of the Christmas market clearly struck a huge chord and the long wait for other firms to open their doors unfortunately means that the closures will increase."

In addition, the new Market Recovery Monitor from CGA and AlixPartners demonstrates that Covid-19 "s food segment has been hit harder than the beverage sector, losing 7.6% and 5.5% of the total locations.

The casual dining sector has reduced by 15.8% since December 2019, translating into over 1.000 casual dining options, which represents virtually one in six.