Here at Paperchase we truly care about supporting the hospitality sector whether that be through our financial and consulting services or advocating for campaigns that uplift the industry. This is why we’re pleased to support #ShowUpForHospitality, a new campaign by Zonal aiming to highlight and further prevent the negative impact caused by people failing to show up to or cancel their bookings at hospitality establishments.

According to findings by Zonal ‘no-shows cost the hospitality industry an estimated £17.6 billion in lost sales every year’.

Recent reasons for failing to show up vary from Covid-related safety concerns to people simply forgetting.

The top 10 reasons highlighted in CGA and Zonal’s report are highlighted below:

  1. I had a change of plans (19%)
  2. Someone else in the group cancelled (19%)
  3. Someone fell ill with COVID-related symptoms (18%)
  4. The venue was unable to reassure me (17%)
  5. I forgot about my booking (16%)
  6. I decided it was too expensive (15%)
  7. The weather put me off (14%)
  8. The venue didn’t contact me to remind me (13%)
  9. I booked a few venues for the same time (13%)
  10. I was too nervous to visit (12%) or I arrived at the venue and didn’t feel comfortable (12%)

The report also outlines a number of recommendations for hospitality businesses to help them overcome this unfortunate issue. These include:

  1. Implementing deposit and cancelation fees (though data showed that the reception this varied between age groups, occasion type and whether booking for indoor or outdoor seating. See further details in the report here)
  2. Reminding people about their reservations
  3. Making the cancelation process digital and simple

Spreading awareness of the #ShowUpForHospitality can also highlight to consumers how much of a difference they can make and encourage them to show up or cancel in the future. Find out more about how you can support and join the campaign here.

Paperchase is a specialist hospitality accountancy and consultancy with over 30 years of experience helping to raise the efficiency and growth of hundreds of hospitality brands around the world. If you have an enquiry or require support please feel free to contact us here.

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