Stiffening competition hits Valletta restaurants’ pockets

Restaurants in Valletta registered a decline in revenue this summer, a decline that has been blamed on growing competition in the capital.

Indeed, Valletta restaurateurs who took part in a Deloitte survey said that their revenue went down by 6% when compared to the previous summer.

17 restaurants were surveyed in total across Valletta, out of which nine registered lower revenues, seven registered higher ones, and two said that their revenues were unchanged. 

Deloitte official Pierre Donvez explained that such a decline boiled down to the fact that more restaurants have opened in the capital, thereby leading to increased competition.

In contrast, Gozo restaurants registered a 3.2% increase in revenue when compared to the previous summer, while the revenue of restaurants in the south of Malta increased by 1.3%.

Marginal changes were registered amongst restaurants in Sliema (+0.8%), the centre of Malta (+0.8%), the north of Malta (+0.4%), and St. Julian’s (-0.7%).

The 89 surveyed restaurants also said that their payroll costs have increased by 2.7% over the past year. Donvez explained that restaurants had difficulty finding staff due to the low wages on offer in the hospitality industry, thus forcing them to raise workers’ salaries.

The survey also cast a light on the spending habits of consumers at Maltese restaurants - 53% of which are locals and 47% tourists.

Restaurateurs said that around 30% of their diners spend €30 or more per head, 22% spend between €20 and €30, 25% between €15 and €20, 12% between €10 and €15, while only 10% spent less than €10 per meal.