Britain’s managed hospitality groups recorded overall like-for-like sales growth of 2.9% in December, according to the latest NIQ RSM Hospitality Business Tracker, with pubs outperforming both restaurants and bars over the key festive trading period.
The Tracker, produced by NIQ and powered by CGA intelligence in association with RSM, shows pubs’ like-for-like sales were 5.1% ahead of December 2024, driven by celebratory visits in the run-up to Christmas and New Year.
Restaurants saw flatter trading, with like-for-like sales up 0.8% year-on-year in December, while bars reported a 1.7% fall. The Tracker noted that pubs outpaced restaurants for growth in every month of 2025, and that December was the strongest month of the year for both restaurants and bars.
With all channels combined, Britain’s managed hospitality groups achieved like-for-like growth of 2.9% in December, the Tracker’s highest point since April and only the second time it topped 1% in the whole of 2025. On a total sales basis, which includes venues opened by groups in the last 12 months, growth rose to 6.2%, around twice the rate of inflation.
Karl Chessell, director – hospitality operators and food, EMEA at NIQ, said, “December’s like-for-like growth was steady rather than spectacular, and it is unlikely to have been enough to offset the extra burden of costs imposed on hospitality over the course of 2025. More positively, a late flurry of celebratory drinking-out means many pub operators ended the year on a high and start the new year with valuable extra reserves.
“Strong total growth also shows groups remain optimistic enough about the long-term future to invest in new sites. However, with consumers’ spending still fragile and margins so tight, the trading environment is likely to remain challenging for some time to come.”
Saxon Moseley, head of leisure and hospitality at RSM UK, said, “2025 was a difficult year for the sector and while these results are hardly earth shattering, they were the best like-for-like performance for restaurants and bars this year, offering operators a glimmer of hope for 2026.
“Pubs continue to trade strongly and are best placed to capitalise on growing consumer confidence as we start the new year. However, they are also contending with significant cost pressures which are disproportionately weighing on the sector, eroding profitability and in some cases accelerating closures. The industry is very much in need of some good news in 2026.”
