Research reveals Brits only try new food & drink venues 1-2 times a year

Millennials keeping “the local” tradition alive while Gen Z abandons pubs and clubs

Stampede, the Scottish start up that helps public venues turn their guest Wifi into a marketing platform, today released the results of new research into the habits of people in the UK going out pubs, bars, cafés and restaurants. The report shows that the British public are stuck in a routine of going to the same places repeatedly, that Londoners are surprisingly sociable patrons, that young people are ditching the local pub (as well as clubs) and that venue owners must do more to entice new customers. The report also dispels the myth that people are more likely to leave a bad review that a good one, and other surprising stats include the fact that 28% of Brits said they could go longer without sex than without data.

Key findings include:

• Half of respondents said that they only try new venues when given a prompt (eg. a promotional deal or recommendation) – yet a quarter of people said that their favourite pub/bar puts no effort into marketing new deals and events
• More than a third of Brits (38%) say they only try new venues to eat or drink less than once a year. The majority only try a new venue every six months or less
• Millennials are the most regular pub and club patrons – gen Zs are the least: 25-34yr olds are the most likely to have a pub they consider their ‘local’ (85%) vs just 46% of 18-24yr olds. 30% of 25-34yr olds say they regularly go to clubs, vs just 7% of 18-24yr olds
• Despite its reputation for being an unsociable city, Londoners are far more likely to have a pub they consider their local (77% vs a national average of 57%) and are the second most likely to know their pub landlords and restaurant owners (47%) only behind Northern Ireland (50%). Londoners are also more likely to try new venues more often – 69% said they try a new venue every month or whenever a new venue opens
• One in five people said they only go to their favourite venue on special occasions
• Contrary to popular belief, people seem to be just as willing to leave online reviews for positive eating experiences as well as negative. 36% of people said they had reviewed their favourite restaurant, but roughly the same percentage (35%) had left an online review for their worst eating experience

“On the whole, people are rarely as brave or adventurous as they’d like to think – we are all creatures of habit,” said Patrick Clover, Stampede founder and CEO. “People spend their entire lives going to the same venues over and over again out of routine, yet many are desperate to break the cycle. Thankfully all it takes is the right promotion, a good review or a suggestion from a friend and even the most unadventurous people will brave new experiences.”

“Yes, we were surprised to learn Londoners were so sociable. I’ll try to spark up a conversation next time I’m on the underground!”

Stampede also wanted to learn whether Brits were dependent on their mobile devices and understand their experiences of getting connected to wifi in popular venues. Related findings include:

• 62% of people said they feel better when they are connected to public wifi, even if they have data remaining
• 33% of women said they could go longer without sex than they could data
• A quarter of men surveyed said they could forgo love and friendship for longer than data
• More than half of respondents reported experiencing problems connecting to public wifi in the past – many reported problems with passwords not working (25%), not being able to find the right password (23%) and registration processes taking too long (22%)

“Being connected at all times has become part and parcel of modern life, and that includes drinks after work, big nights out and even dates. People want to stay connected, share their lives with others on social media and need their phones to use services like Uber to get them to and from their chosen venues. It’s a long time since Wifi was optional for venues, but sadly there’s still no accepted best practice on how to register – hence the problems people encounter with passwords hidden on blackboards which often don’t actually work. That’s why it’s Stampede’s mission to standardise Wifi across the UK so that people can get connected quicker, use the internet in public spaces more securely, and give venue owners the chance to make Wifi work better for them.