Wetherspoon reports fall in sales
Pub chain JD Wetherspoon has said it remains “cautious” about 2008 trading after it saw a fall in sales over the Christmas and New Year period.
Like-for-like sales at the company, which exclude new pub openings, fell 3.2% in the 11 weeks to 13 January, compared with a year earlier.
Wetherspoon said rising sales of food, real ale and coffee had failed to offset a fall in lager and spirits.
The sales decline is worse than the 1% fall in the 13 weeks to 28 October.
As a result, Wetherspoon said it was now slowing its rate of new pub openings.
It will now open 25 new outlets in its financial year to the end of July, less than previously indicated.
The company currently has 683 pubs in the UK.
It said it remained confident that the UK-wide smoking ban would see growth in both bar and food sales in the medium and long term.
