In view of rising prices, people are also cutting back on travel and restaurant visits. This caused problems for the hospitality industry in the first half of the year.
As a result of inflation, consumers have become more frugal – and the hospitality industry also felt this in the first half of the year. Sales shrank by almost eleven percent in the first six months, excluding the general inflation rate (nominal), as the hotel and restaurant association Dehoga reported based on a member survey. “Profits have fallen even more dramatically,” it said. The bottom line is that businesses were left with more than a fifth less than in the same period last year.
“The current survey results illustrate the continuing very tense situation in the hospitality industry,” said Dehoga President Guido Zöllick. The losses in sales and profits are above average for inns and restaurants as well as clubs and discotheques.
Many of the companies surveyed are also pessimistic about the coming months. According to Dehoga, almost one in three association members rated the prospects for the third quarter as “poor”, and a further 9 percent even rated them as “very poor”. Nevertheless, more than half of the companies are more optimistic. Almost 37 percent rate their economic prospects as “satisfactory”, and more than one in five companies even rated them as “good” or “very good”.
The expiration of the VAT reduction for restaurant meals at the beginning of the year has, as expected, made the situation worse, the Dehoga said. According to the survey, almost 90 percent of businesses were forced to raise prices. “Despite our best efforts, it is becoming increasingly difficult for our businesses to operate economically,” Zöllick stressed.
The association conducted the survey among its members between July 2 and 10. More than 2,700 companies took part nationwide.
Source: Stern
