The report highlights growth will only come however, for those sectors and brands that are able to deal with increased costs and still deliver to consumers’ growing scrutiny of value and higher expectations of ‘memorable experiences’.
It forecasts a total market growth of only +1.6% in 2026. This growth takes the eating and drinking out of home market to a total valuation of £106bn, a £1.6bn increase on the size of the market at the end of 2025, but lower than previous forecasts.
The 'Reinventing Hospitality' report has been produced by Future Foodservice, the forecast and advisory business founded by Simon Stenning, the leading forecaster, analyst and commentator on the UK hospitality/foodservice market.
Stenning commented: “We have to be cautious with our forecasts, as the economic landscape and consumer confidence is so fragile, especially with global friction casting negative shadows on consumer & business sentiment. We also recognise that not all businesses will survive the challenging conditions.
“It is easy to point out the opportunities from reinventing the offer, being creative, innovative and from investing in new concepts, however there are many operators who struggle to see what the future looks like with significant business cost increases.
“What we forecast is that there will be many operators who can effectively reach and attract consumers, and there are many brands and concepts that are emerging with long-term, broad appeal.”
Growth will come from those sectors and brands that can best adopt to changing consumer tastes, demands and expectations, taking into account the continuing polarisation of the market. The report outlines the continuing importance of the ‘Pleasure Principle’ to deliver experiences exceeding consumer expectations.
In 2026, the report predicts the sectors that will see higher rates of growth will be fast food, retail high st, leisure and contract catering, whilst pubs and restaurants will face difficulties in gaining overall growth.