City centres have been transformed by the coronavirus pandemic as more people work from home. The time is now to consider how the concept of a city bar may evolve post-Covid-19.
After-work drinking is a well-established cultural norm in many places around the world, particularly Western Europe, the US and parts of Asia. City bars have long played a central role in this routine, and in addition to after-work drinks they are frequently the location for weekday business meetings. Such venues may therefore generate a significant portion of their revenue from a city-based workforce – a workforce that we may find has greatly diminished in the wake of Covid-19.
Over the course of the pandemic, working from home has become the new normal for most companies. Enabled by video-conferencing tools and other technologies, staff members have had to adapt to successfully working away from the office in a way they might not have previously imagined. As such, business owners are now offering their employees more flexibility with regards to where they can work in the medium to long term, with some even suggesting home working could become a permanent fixture.
Even firms that will re-open their offices will likely do so with limited capacity. Many will find themselves having to implement office rotas which will reduce the number of people who will travel into work daily allowing them to comply with social-distancing guidelines. In addition, businesses that allow home working to continue will be perceived as supportive of their employees work-life balance and be more environmentally sustainable. Many will also be driven by the savings that could be made by downsizing their office spaces.
But what does this mean around the world for bars, pubs and restaurants that have long relied on the business of professionals who frequently commute into the city for work, and what can be adapted and implemented in the Irish market for 2021 and beyond?
After-work drinks are a key consumption occasion in Western European countries, notably the UK, as well as in other markets such as Germany, Spain and Italy. “Undoubtedly, increased working from home will lead to a change in the on-trade in Western Europe,” says Humphrey Serjeantson, IWSR’s Research Director for Western Europe. “As lockdown restrictions are gradually lifted, workers will return to offices to some extent, but it is likely to be a gradual transition.”
Bars around the world, whether urban or rural, have adjusted their business models to stay afloat during the pandemic. By law many have introduced new safety and hygiene measures, restricted table numbers and implemented reservation systems to adhere to social-distancing guidelines. A key factor here is the ability to accommodate drinkers outside – as long as the European summer holds, those bars and pubs with outside space will be better placed to survive in the short-term. Bars (and restaurants) able to sell alcohol for off-premise consumption are likely also to fare better. In Spain – where there is an established lunchtime restaurant culture and a developing trend for after-work drinks – many bars are small and not suited to any kind of social distancing. These venues are having to adapt by installing outdoor seating, most of which has been the result of a temporary concession by town councils as a way to help boost trade.
Despite the measures that city bars will have to take to encourage drinkers to return, more consumers may likely choose to eat and drink closer to home, at least in the short-term. In general, notwithstanding travel restrictions, consumers will feel safest in their own neighbourhoods and localities and are less likely to dine or shop far away from where they live. The decline in consumption in city bars will be compensated to some degree by local venues nearer where people live, as people still want to go out for a drink after a day at work. However, local venues will also have to operate under significant restrictions.
Where once in Ireland an establishment that would have been considered “a pub with a food menu”, to survive and thrive it must now view and position itself as a smart casual dining restaurant with a full-service bar offering. An even split of sales, 50% food, 50% beverage will become the norm as customers habits and expectations have changed forever. In fact, it will not be uncommon to see revenues from food exceeding that from beverages. As much as this presents a challenge for owners and operators, it presents a big opportunity to win and keep new customers over a wider spread of the day and week, and build a more profitable, more customer focused business. Fresh, quality, local produce, at a good price, well presented by friendly, knowledgeable, engaging staff, in a clean, safe, vibrant space will be the order of the day! And whatever you do, don’t cut corners on coffee quality, along with a varied and rotating food menu it can be a point of difference versus your competitors.
Irish owned and operated since 1993 Total Stock Control is your trusted nationwide partner for all your stocktaking and stock management needs. Serving large and small customers in Ireland and Northern Ireland, we work with single and multi-site operators of Hotels, Bars, Restaurants, and Off Licences on a weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly basis. We support hospitality business of all varieties and locations, from private members clubs, to high volume transit hubs, through to large late-night music venues and fine dining restaurants. Don’t just take it from us, contact us directly for any further questions you may have or support you may need.
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