What effects did Freedom Day have on the hospitality industry?
July 19th 2021 – a day known to many as Freedom Day - marked a complete lifting of Coronavirus restrictions that have hindered the hospitality sector for many months. For businesses and individuals working in hospitality, there is one question left to ask. Has Freedom Day truly saved the hospitality sector? At JW Recruitment, we have compiled this blog post looking into the effects that Freedom Day has had on the hospitality sector, two weeks later.
What effect did Freedom Day have in terms of hospitality industry footfall?
Right across the nation, it was the late-night sectors of hospitality including nightclubs and bars that saw the most benefit from Freedom Day. With these two sectors reopening their doors fully for the first time since March 2020, footfall was clocked in by research from Wireless Social as reaching 80% of its pre-Covid levels. Not a bad start. As the weekend rolled over, however, this figure increased. Research conducted by Wireless Social also recorded footfall to have risen by 13% from this initial Monday. All in all, this means that 93% of the pre-Covid footfall levels were achieved in the first week of this relaxation.
So, what were the benefits?
This result has been received by the hospitality industry with open arms. This high retainment of preCOVID levels has meant that some long sought after cash has been injected into areas of hospitality that have not seen any for well over a year now. It means that the industry is on the road to recovery, helping the general economy to get back on its feet. With lost jobs due to this draught of hospitality services, Freedom Day has generated a restart in wages for many, having a rather positive impact.
Was the outcome of Freedom Day what we expected?
It can be argued that after so many months shut up inside that Freedom Day was always going to have a high attendance rate. However, rather than the youngest generations making up the numbers, surprisingly it has been the over 35-year-olds who have generated the most footfall. This is a conclusion reached due to research conducted by Wireless Social.
Due to high attendance numbers, commercially Freedom Day has been a success for hospitality workers. For more information on the effects that Freedom Day has had on the hospitality sector, contact our friendly and professional team at JW Recruitment today.
