Hospitality sales growth strengthens in September

Britain’s hospitality sector recorded its strongest sales growth of 2026 in September, giving operators some encouragement ahead of the final quarter of the year.

The improvement follows a difficult period of rising costs, cautious consumer spending and pressure on margins. However, many businesses are still struggling to achieve meaningful growth once inflation and higher operating costs are taken into account.

According to the latest NIQ RSM Hospitality Business Tracker, like-for-like sales across Britain’s leading managed hospitality groups rose by 2.7% in September compared with the same month last year. This was up from growth of 0.8% in August and marked a fifth consecutive month of positive trading.

Total sales increased by 6.2%, helped by investment in new pubs, restaurants and bars over the previous 12 months.

Businesses outside London performed slightly better than those in the capital. Like-for-like sales increased by 2.8% beyond the M25, compared with 2.3% in London. This suggests consumer spending has remained relatively resilient across many regional markets despite economic pressures.

Pubs were the strongest performers, with like-for-like sales up 3.8% year on year. September was their second-best trading month of 2026, behind the summer boost provided by the men’s football World Cup.

Restaurants recorded growth of 2.6%, their best performance since November 2024 and an improvement after a difficult first half of the year.

Bars continued to struggle, with sales falling by 1.7%. Even so, this was their strongest result since the beginning of 2025.

Despite the improvement, September’s growth remained below the UK inflation rate. This means many operators are still not achieving real-terms growth.

Businesses also continue to face pressure from wages, National Insurance contributions, energy prices, food inflation and business rates. Profitability therefore remains under pressure even as sales improve.

Attention is now turning to the forthcoming UK Budget. Industry bodies including UKHospitality have called for tax reform, business rates relief and other measures to reduce costs. Businesses have warned that further increases could affect investment, recruitment and expansion.

Improving sales may give operators more confidence as they approach festive trading and start planning for 2027. Some businesses that delayed recruitment could strengthen leadership, operations, commercial and support functions. But with costs still high, employers are likely to focus on candidates who can improve commercial performance, productivity and operational efficiency.

What RHR thinks

We believe September’s figures are an encouraging sign that demand for hospitality experiences remains strong when businesses get their offer right. But the lack of consistent real-terms growth shows why the upcoming Budget and government support remain important. Operators need the confidence to invest in people, sites and long-term growth. We expect expanding and modernising businesses to focus on strong leaders who can balance commercial results with operational excellence. Recruitment should strengthen as confidence improves, but continued investment in people will remain important. Over the next 12 to 24 months, leadership quality could matter as much as consumer spending.

What this means for hiring. Improving sales could support recruitment across leadership, operations, commercial and support roles as businesses prepare for festive trading and 2027. Cost pressures mean employers are likely to focus on people who can improve performance, productivity and operational efficiency.