The FINANCIAL — The UK’s hospitality, leisure and retail sectors are set to see significant growth over the next few years, according to a new report from Barclays, which reveals annual expenditure from domestic tourists will surge by 25% to over £108 billion by 2017.
The FINANCIAL — The UK’s hospitality, leisure and retail sectors are set to see significant growth over the next few years, according to a new report from Barclays, which reveals annual expenditure from domestic tourists will surge by 25% to over £108 billion by 2017. The research, independently commissioned for Barclays’ Retail and Hospitality & Leisure sector teams, reveals that growth in domestic tourism will largely be driven by continuing pressures on the cost of living, with many financially under pressure consumers opting to bypass overseas travel in favour of domestic locations.
“The economy is improving and confidence is certainly growing, and while this will lead to a gradual rise in the number of consumers looking to holiday abroad again, it is unlikely to precipitate a return to the holidaying habits we were seeing prior to the downturn,” Mike Saul, Head of Hospitality & Leisure at Barclays, said.
The hospitality and leisure sector will benefit most from the trend towards ‘staycations’, with domestic tourist spend growing to £69 billion by 2017. Pubs and restaurants will be the greatest benefactors, with spend expected to rise by 26% to £37 billion as more people dine out. Hotels and B&Bs will see domestic tourist spend increase by 25% to £17 billion and leisure attractions by 27% to £15 billion, according to Barclays.
While high street retailers continue to face stiff competition from the growth of online sales, the sector will still attract a 23% rise in domestic tourist spend by 2017, to £15.6 billion. In particular, it is predicted that expenditure from UK consumers will fuel impressive growth in the fashion and home sectors, of 33% and 39% respectively.
The outlook is positive across the UK, although some locations will benefit more than others. London will continue to top the ‘staycation’ league table; attracting 16% of domestic spend by 2017. Furthermore, businesses in the South East, South West and Scotland will also perform strongly, according to Barclays.
“With domestic tourism set to be big business for the UK’s hospitality and retail sectors, those with a clearly targeted strategy are set to benefit. It is key that operators understand their customer base and crucially how to communicate with them via the channels their clients prefer to use, be it through social media, print advertising, television or radio. Online channels continue to present a huge opportunity to drive sales and the increasing popularity of search engines and review websites suggests that time and effort would be well spent monitoring and responding to any reviews of their business,” Mike Saul said.
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