Customer scarcity for restaurants and bars in major cities

A new report suggests that restaurants and bars in major cities are struggling to attract the same crowds on Mondays and Fridays as they did before the COVID pandemic.

Many office workers are continuing to work from home on those days, despite Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday being back to normal for nightlife proprietors in big-city business districts.

The persistence and popularity of hybrid work arrangements, which have made three days of working in the office the norm for many white-collar workers, is being blamed for this trend.

A survey conducted last month found that 40% of workers nationwide are still working either fully remote or hybrid, with the average annual decline in spending near the office down more than $4,000 per worker in major cities like New York, DC, and Los Angeles.

This trend is having a significant impact on the hospitality industry, as some workers are not going out to eat or drink as much as they used to.

Despite the nation’s efforts to get back on its feet, the number of people working from home has only halved from its peak during the pandemic, and the level of working from home remains six times higher than before. This trend is causing concern among experts as it is impacting spending patterns in numerous industries.

While workers are benefitting from the convenience and savings in commuting costs and time, it is having a hard impact on businesses in many major downtown areas.

The hospitality industry is struggling to cope with the impact of the persistent trend of remote and hybrid work. High inflation is also shifting spending patterns, which is causing concern among some economists.

The remote working trend is affecting city structure, days of the week that people play sports like golf and tennis, and retail. Remote working is also impacting spending in some cities, as former industry hubs are failing to return to their former glory.

WFH Research found that New York had seen the biggest decline in average annual per-person spending near the office, followed by Los Angeles, Washington DC, and Atlanta. Despite efforts by businesses to bring back-office life, hybrid and remote work has proven popular and persistent, with 12.7% of all full-time workers remaining fully remote as of the first month of 2023. The city that leads the way in work-from-home employees is Washington DC, followed closely by Atlanta, Phoenix, and Los Angeles.