Sask. food and beverage sales surpassing pre-pandemic levels: StatCan

Saskatchewan restaurants are enjoying a busy spring and summer with food and beverage sales rising above pre-pandemic levels, according to recent data from Statistics Canada.

Canadian sales in food services and beverage place were up three per cent for the month of May, a report released Tuesday shows, as the country saw $7.8 billion in sales— the highest since the beginning of the pandemic.

Sales in Saskatchewan have also risen steadily since the start of 2022. In May, the province saw $183 million in seasonally adjusted sales for the month, which is approximately $20 million higher than was recorded in May 2019.

“We’ve seen sales come back to right around that pre-pandemic level from three summers ago back in 2019, so it’s great to see with all the events that are back, it kind of started around when Cathedral Arts Festival Week, that last week in May,” Matt Dean, the owner of Cathedral Social Hall, said.

In May 2021, sales were sitting around $150 million for food services and beverage places, according to Stats Canada.

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Jim Bence, the president and CEO of Hospitality Saskatchewan, attributes the rise in sales to warmer weather along with the need for socialization.

“I think there’s a lot of folks out there that have really been itching to have a great summer and I think we’re seeing that materialize,” he said.

Dean said in-person sales have risen and takeout has actually dropped off since the weather turned warmer.

“I appreciate the support from all our guests because we know times are a little tougher with inflation and prices going up all the time,” Bence said.

Maria Lila, manager, for the 13th Avenue Food and Coffee House, agrees.

“We’re doing good, even with prices going up and all the things, with all of us struggling after the pandemic,” she said.

As sales rise however, personnel issues have become a problem for the restaurant industry.

“We’ve definitely noticed some challenges with labour shortages,” said Dean. “There’s a little bit more challenge in trying to find new employees and retaining them, especially in the back of house, so that’s more of a challenge in the last six months.”

Lila agreed, saying that while her team currently sits at 10-12 employees, in order to meet demands, they need 15.

Hospitality Saskatchewan has seen the same need in the industry.

“On saskjobs.ca, so that’s just one place where employers can post, so right now when I just looked at it 10 minutes ago, there was roughly around 3,700 available jobs in hospitality and tourism,” Bence said.

While the year is up $30 million from last year in sales, inflation makes these numbers less impressive.

“Just with prices, inflation has really outstripped a lot of what those profit margins are especially in food and beverage, right?” Bence explained. “Because those margins are so thin already, it’s just becoming extremely difficult.”