Bars and restaurants saw strong growth over the weekend following a full reopening.
- Finally, normal times are approaching for an industry that has been hit hard, says Øyvind Brekke, head of BankAxept and BankID.
Restaurants and bars are catching up
As distance, face masks and the dance ban vanished on Saturday, a record number of customers emerged to celebrate the new opening at city nightclubs. With no distancing or health restrictions, the full pressure on bars and restaurants resumed and the use of payment cards immediately increased.
- The turnover in Norwegian bars increased by 156%. compared to the last weekend of January and by 26 percent. compared to last weekend. Restaurants also received an increase with a 30 percent increase in revenue from the last weekend of January, says Brekke.
From January onwards, the nightlife gradually reopens; first with limited opening hours, then with normal opening hours, but still with the requirement for metro and mask distances. Things are moving towards a brighter time for the nightlife industry.
Sales growth was highest in Vestfold and Telemark, Viken and Trøndelag, by 45, 40 and 36 percent respectively since last weekend. In Oslo, there was "only" a 22 percent increase in bar turnover.
Rogaland is the county that saw the biggest increase in bars compared to the last weekend of January, when opening hours were restricted. The increase was over 260 percent.
The renowned ski resorts of Trysil, Hemsedal, Øyer and Hol saw their turnover grow 54 percent compared to the last weekend of January and 26 percent more than last weekend.
In the photo: Øyvind Brekke, head of BankAxept and BankID
Source: Vipps
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