There was something of a ‘hangover’ for the hospitality sector, following a very busy five-weekend March during which Easter fell, according to the latest AIB Spend Trend report for April.
Spend in pubs and off-licences went down by 17% and restaurant/takeaway spend went down by 7%, while hotel spend went down by 3%.
The monthly data was compiled from over 70 million debit and credit card transactions in store and online during April 2024.
‘Spend To Rebound’
“The decline in April’s hospitality spend wasn’t a surprise, given March had been a five-weekend month and Easter fell during it,” said John Brennan, head of SME banking at AIB.
“We expect that hospitality spend to rebound in the coming weeks and months.”
Easter
The data shows that Friday 26 April was the highest spending day of the month, overall.
Overall spending was flat month on month, and up marginally year on year (Easter fell in April last year).
The majority of spend was online, with contactless payments decreasing by 5%, month on month – perhaps down to hospitality spending decreasing.
‘Sunnier Weather’
“Irish consumers are preparing for summer, as they spent more on clothing and hardware in April,” said Brennan, “and the 19% surge in bicycle spend is a sure sign that we’re looking forward to longer days and sunnier weather.”
Hospitality In Dublin
Meanwhile, separate research released this week showed that it was a disappointing start to 2024 for the hospitality sector in Dublin, with a 2.5% decline in entertainment spending at hotels, bars and restaurants in the first quarter.
This is according to the latest SpendingPulse report – provided by MasterCard Advisors and produced in conjunction with Grant Thornton on behalf of the four Dublin local authorities – on national and Dublin retail sales performances.
The data shows the most significant contraction in the hospitality sector since the tail end of the pandemic, in 2021.
