One-third of the Lithuanian population reports not having gone to a café during the past six months, while another third claimed to be doing so less frequently. This is seen in a new surveys which the LRT public broadcaster published in Monday.
65% have visited catering establishments during the past half-year, while 34% have not. Among those who have, 22% reported doing so less often than in the past, 4% saying that they did so more often, and 39% claiming that they have not changed their habits at all.
Those who said they dined out less often were more likely to be women, respondents aged 30-64, residents of large towns, those with more than a secondary education, and those with the highest level of family income. 69% of those who did not visit a café were 65 or older.
“The most striking thing here is that around one-third of people said that they go to cafés less often than before, SEB Bank economist Tadas Povilauskas told LRT. “This is a high level, and the message is that the catering sector is viewing the situation as quite a difficult one.”
The director of the Lithuanian Association of Hotels and Restaurants, Evalda Siskauskiene, says that the survey results are no surprise, adding that this is the result of numerous factors such as the tax burden, rising wages, a drop in consumption, and the seasonal factor.
The survey of 1,020 adults in Lithuania was carried out by Baltijos Tyrimai from March 8-24.
Source: BNS
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