Welcome to the September Edition of Bord Bia's Ireland Market Foodservice Newsletter.
Delighted to confirm that registration for our 2024 Foodservice Seminar is now open! This year’s event is taking place at the Johnstown House Hotel, Enfield on the morning of Thursday, 13th November. For more information and to book your place, please visit our website here.
Monthly Spotlight: Ongoing Challenges for Irish Hospitality
Wednesday, September 4th : although Dalata Hotel Group (the largest hotel group in Ireland) reported a 6% rise in revenues for the six months to end of June, they also confirmed that profit after tax fell by 15%. Revenue per available room (RevPAR) and occupancy rates were both slightly down against bumper levels from 2023. Dalata said that demand from corporate and international visitors remains strong, but it was seeing a softening from more cost-conscious domestic customers relative to last year. Dermot Crowley, Dalata Hotel Group CEO added that the Dublin Airport passenger cap (which was also in the news this week) should be ‘a big concern for anyone, particularly for small firms in the hospitality sector’.
General Industry News
Annual inflation falls to 3-year low of 1.1% - flash data
RTE – 29.08.2024
Inflation in Ireland is continuing to ease, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office. This compared to 1.5% in the 12 months to July when the figures for other countries using the euro were 2.6% and is the lowest rate since April 2021. A drop in energy prices has helped lower Ireland's inflation as costs fell 9.5% in the 12 months to August and 0.6% in the month. However, food prices are rising - they are up 0.1% last month and 2% in the past year.
Services sector records solid growth in August, but outlook moderates
The Irish Examiner – 04.09.2024
Service companies experienced solid growth during August, with all four sub-sectors registering higher activity for the first time in months, the latest AIB Purchasing Managers Index shows. According to the PMI, the services sector during August read at 53.8 — up marginally from 53.6 in July — signalling solid growth. Any number above 50 indicates growth in the sector. The pace of expansion was broadly in line with the trend for 2024 so far, which is 53.9 but it is still weaker than the long-term average of 55.1 since 2000. Transport, tourism, and leisure had a reading of 53.5 — the first recorded growth in three months.
Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) & Pub Sector
McDonald’s to open more than 200 new UK & ROI restaurants over next four years, with focus on high street
Propel – 21.08.2024
McDonald’s plans to opens more than 200 restaurants in the UK and the Republic of Ireland over the next four years, creating 24,000 jobs, in a sign of faith in the high street, reports The Times. The expansion, its biggest since 2002, is part of a £1bn investment by the chain and its franchisees, which already have approx. 1,300 outlets in the UK and 95 restaurants in ROI, employing 171,415 people. Four fifths of its restaurants are owned and operated by franchisees.
Over 2,000 Pubs Across Ireland Have Closed Since 2005
Hospitality Ireland – 28.08.2024
A new report from the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI) shows a continuing drop in the number of pubs in Ireland, with 2,054 fewer pubs today than there were in 2005. The report shows that an average of 114 pubs have closed annually over the past 18 years. All 26 counties have experienced a decline in pub numbers since 2005. Counties Limerick (35.6%), Roscommon (31.9%), Cork (31.4%), Tipperary (31.2%) and Laois (30.6%) have seen the highest declines, each exceeding the national closure average of 24%. The lowest number of pub closures over the period came in Dublin, which has seen a decline of 3% in pub numbers.
Hotel & Restaurant Sector
Hard Rock closing Dublin hotel as new owner takes control of the property
Business Post – 18.07.2024
Hard Rock Hotels is set to close down its first and only Irish operation after Leonardo Hotels snapped up the property it trades from. The hospitality giant has taken over Hard Rock’s premises in Temple Bar, which it intends to rebrand under its umbrella of NYX hotels. It comes less than five years after the hotel first opened its doors. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed, however company filings valued the property in excess of €30 million in 2022.
Chophouse in Ballsbridge latest restaurant to close: ‘We have tried everything’
The Irish Times – 02.09.2024
The Chophouse Bar & Restaurant in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, has said it is closing after 15 years of service. In a statement on posted on Instagram and its website, the restaurant’s owners Kevin Arundel and Jillian Mulcahy said “the rising costs made it impossible to keep our doors open”. The owners said their Chophouse branch in Sandymount, Dublin 4, which they opened last year, will continue to trade.
Casual Dining / Contract Catering Sector
Zambrero Ireland opens 25th Location
Hospitality Ireland – 22.08.2024
Zambrero, the Mexican-inspired restaurant chain, has reached a milestone of 25 locations in Ireland, with former rugby player Darragh Fanning at the helm. Fanning opened the first Zambrero location on Dublin’s Hatch Street in February 2016. After successfully opening three outlets, Fanning then secured his first franchise in September 2018, located at Beacon South Quarter, in Sandyford, Dublin. The brand entered Covid with just five locations and has since experienced fast growth, reaching 25 locations with an opening in Rathmines earlier this summer.
Insomnia Coffee Opens New Locations In Galway
Checkout – 02.09.2024
Insomnia Coffee, the Irish independent coffee shop chain, has announced the opening of two new locations in Galway, located in Knocknacarra and Westside. Insomnia opened its first café in Galway in 1997 and its still serving over 27 years later. The company has over 150 stores and over 500 self-service units in operation around Ireland.