Harri

The UK Pub Sector:
Under Pressure in 2026

161 pub closures in Q1 alone. 52% staff turnover. £3.4bn in new employment costs. The data every operator needs before their next board meeting.

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161
Pub closures in Q1 2026
+26% YoY
52%
Annual staff turnover
Bars & clubs 47%
£3.4bn
Extra annual employment costs
Across UK hospitality
42%
New hires who quit <30 days
Median across sector

Built on data from 395 UK hospitality operators · 15,345 active locations · 734 business groups

"The structural challenges are real, but so is the determination to navigate them."
Andrew Taylor · Pub & Restaurant Labour Consultant
What's inside

Four forces reshaping every UK pub P&L.

The full report unpacks each with granular data, tables, and the 4-pillar benchmarking framework operators are using to separate from the pack.

The Closure Wave
161
permanent closures

Q1 2026 pub closures up 26% year-on-year, and the curve is steepening.

Regional breakdown: North West -34%, Midlands -29%, London -18% net supply… Unlocks with report
The People Crisis
52% / 42%
turnover · 30-day quit

Half your team leaves each year. Two in five new hires don't make it a month.

Top-quartile operators cut 90-day churn from 27.1% to under 10%… Unlocks with report
The Compliance Clock
Oct 2026
ERA shift-notice rules

The Employment Rights Act reshapes scheduling. Most operators aren't ready.

Shift-notice windows, guaranteed-hours triggers, penalty exposure by band… Unlocks with report
The Guest Shift
+0.8%
eat & drink spend YoY

Visit frequency is falling, but spend-per-occasion is holding. Read the shift.

Daypart migration, wet-vs-dry mix, community index vs. urban benchmark… Unlocks with report
"Every metric points in the same direction: the sector is under strain, and the operators who move fastest on hiring and retention will separate from the pack not in years, but in quarters."
HarriSpring 2026

The UK Pub Sector:
Under Pressure in 2026

Hospitality Benchmark Report

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See the complete benchmarking data, the 4-pillar framework, and where your business sits against top-quartile operators.

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Why Harri

Four pillars. One workforce platform for hospitality.

The same framework the report benchmarks against, applied to your estate.

Talent Acquisition
£6-12K
recovered per site

Time-to-hire cut from 10 days to 4.6, the top-quartile benchmark.

Workforce Management
1 free site
of labour per 60-site estate

Schedule variance drops from 8-10% to under 3% at top performers.

Employee Engagement
25%
fewer early leavers

90-day retention lifts from 72.9% to 90%+ inside the critical window.

Insights & Analytics
£50.51 → £72.60
SPLH uplift at top quartile

Forecast error 12% → 4%. ~£48K recovered per £600K-revenue site.

See how Harri applies this to your estate.

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