Bars beat the ban
Top-end bars are bearing up better than pubs during the smoking ban and the credit crunch, according to exclusive research compiled by The Publican's sister magazine.
The Theme Industry Report, published this week, suggests the smoking ban has had a relatively neutral effect on the sector, with:
• 31 per cent of respondents saying it has had a positive effect on trade
• 33 per cent saying it has been negative
• 36 per cent reporting no material difference.
Only one in 20 (six per cent) said the ban was having a "major negative impact" on their trade.
Premium bar and restaurant owners responding to the report suggested their venues were holding up better than pubs to the current trading climate as their customers were attracted by a wider number of factors, including the chance to meet new partners - as well as higher standards of service, food and drink.
Bob Senior, managing director of North East-based night-time operator Utopian Leisure, said: "Pub-goers often associated smoking and drinking as one habit.
"But our core customers are aged between 18 and 30 - and they're more likely to be going out to meet the opposite sex. And if they want a nicotine hit they'll get it when they are walking between bars on a circuit."
Steve Manktelow, operations manager at London-based bar group Ignite, said: "We had a slight drop-off in trade after the ban but that evened out pretty quickly.
"Smokers seem to be happy to go outside - and I think smokers in the UK are more accepting of this than in some other countries."
A recent study for the BII saw three out of four (74 per cent) publicans claim the smoking ban had been bad for trade - while one in two (47 per cent) said they had laid off staff as a direct result.
'The people are best'
Bartenders and licensees responding to the Theme Industry Report said 'the people they work with' was the best thing about working in the sector.
'The customers' and the variety of the job were also popular reasons for working in the trade.
Unsurprisingly, it was hours of week, low pay, and the red tape that continues to entangle the licensed trade that were cited as the worst aspects of working in premium bars.
A total of 600 people responded to the Theme Industry Report in July and August this year.
