As Daily News Hungary previously wrote, the pandemic put the hospitality sector in a horrible situation. 40-50 thousand people left the hospitality sector in Hungary.
In 2019, there were 193,000 people working in hospitality, but in 2020, this number dropped below 177,000. Events at the end of the year usually bring a lot of profit, but during the pandemic, this amount of money was significantly smaller than in the previous years. And the situation still does not seem to get any better.
"25-30 per cent of restaurants could close by the end of 2022."
In 2019, there were 26,000 businesses in the hospitality industry. From these, 12,000 people were independent entrepreneurs, and 14,000 people had business partners. There are between 2,500 and 3,000 new entrepreneurships yearly, and almost the exact same number of businesses close down, writes mfor.hu.
"Elek Nagy, the President of BKIK, said that by the end of the year, 25 to 30 per cent of restaurants would go bankrupt. Another possibility would be to switch to a completely different profile, in the case they have the capital, the strength, and the necessary employees."
He also said that the summer was good for businesses near Lake Balaton and other baths and beaches. Budapest, however, suffered a loss in the tourism sector. Nagy explained that home office opportunities made it difficult for restaurants as well. No wonder, because many workers do not need to eat in restaurants or order food from them in their lunch break.
Nagy went on to explain that home delivery did not help certain restaurants that put effort into the design or the service of the food. He said that expensive restaurants and cheaper buffets may be able to stay afloat, but places with other price ranges could be at risk of closing down.
Another factor that makes surviving the pandemic hard for restaurants is that many people have left their former jobs. Even five-star hotels are said to be looking for employees on Facebook.