A ST Johnston publican has described the move by Diageo to hike the price of its draught products by a further seven cent per pint next month as a “terrible blow”.
Alice Lynch, of Maggie’s Tavern, said she has been left devastated by the development, which she said has come as a “bolt out of the blue”.
Speaking to the Donegal News, Ms Lynch said: “I am devastated. It’s a terrible blow. I’m out in the middle of the country, people have it hard enough.”
Asked if she was concerned the measure would see a drop in footfall, Ms Lynch said: “We can’t be compared to big towns, but of course there are concerns.
“We are closed during the week, so we rely only on our weekend trade. It’s a very hard blow. We’re lucky we do Sunday lunches and parties. The whole thing has come like a bolt out of the blue.”
Meanwhile, the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland (VFI) has strongly criticised Diageo’s decision to increase the price of its draught products by a further seven cent per pint (ex VAT), effective from February 2, warning that the move will pile yet more pressure on pubs already struggling to survive.
Drink costs are the single biggest cost facing all publicans and this latest increase comes at a time when margins are already being eroded by rising labour costs, high energy prices and ongoing inflation across all areas of the business.
For many pubs, there is simply no capacity left to absorb further supplier increases.
Pat Crotty, CEO of the VFI, said drink costs are the biggest burden publicans face.
“This latest price increase from Diageo will put even more pressure on pubs that are already operating on extremely tight margins. Many will be left with no option but to pass this on to customers, which helps nobody,” he said.
