Member Article

Businesses urged to prepare for smoking ban

North East hospitality and leisure businesses that do not plan for the new smoking ban legislation risk longer periods of hardship and potential closures than those that do plan, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. In its briefing paper ‘Preparing for the impact of the smoking ban,’ PWC indicated that the scale of the impact will vary for different types of businesses but for the companies most affected, such as bingo halls, a revenue decline of up to 15 percent is possible with many taking more than three years to recover to pre-ban revenue levels.

Richard Bunter, partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Newcastle said: “We have seen smoking prevalence ranging from 20 percent of customers to over 50 percent. But the big issue is how those smokers might alter their behaviour after the ban and the knock-on effect that might have on revenues and profit. “The experience of existing smoking bans in other countries shows that some industries have seen revenues drop dramatically and have taken several years to recover to pre-ban levels. In fact, some individual businesses may never recover and may face closure.”

PWC suggest that adjusting to the new smoke-free environment will also require a focus on innovation – substituting lost revenues with new products and services.

The smoking ban will be implemented in Wales on 2 April, Northern Ireland on 30 April and England on 1 July.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .