Newcastle Upon Tyne, known for its iconic and vibrant student nightlife is undergoing a major shift. Once packed clubs and bars, are now struggling.
Who is to blame? The cost of a night out, often totalling over £50 including entrance fees, drinks and transport. A midweek night out has become an inaccessible luxury.
According to the Night Time Industries Association, 68% of young people have reduced their involvement in nightlife, with the main reason being due to the current economic climate. A further 53% reportedly are spending less on going out compared to last year. The association also reported that over half of young women have concerns about going out due to safety related worries.
This is happening in Newcastle, students and young people are attending pubs and casual venues more. The shift towards more intimate, cheaper businesses aligns with national trends. Manager at Bar Blanc, Dan explained that the quantity of students frequenting the establishment since the Covid-19 pandemic has rapidly increased. Casual bars and pubs are benefiting from the decline in late-night club culture.
Esme Featherstone, a worker at Digital nightclub in Newcastle expanded on the topic, sharing that Digital have expanded into putting on more daytime events than ever before, catering to the shift in behaviours to casual and day drinking activities. She discusses a change in demographic at the venue, stating that she thinks customers are now those with higher disposable incomes.
“I think people care less about the money they’re spending, and I think maybe it’s because we’ve got a shift in the class of people that are coming out now. Because of the cost of living crisis we’ve had to put bar prices up, we’ve had to put everything up. What you notice now it that, back then (pre-Covid) you’d be charging less for a drink, but people would care more about spending, whereas now when you’re charging more for a drink, people seem to care less about spending, and I think that’s because the clientele has shifted slightly, to people that have more money, coming out on a night”
Rekom UK’s Chairman on nightlife in 2023; “Having had their studies disrupted by Covid-19, a return to normality should be what they were looking forward to. To then face a cost-of-living crisis and huge inflationary pressures when it’s ‘their time’ as young adults, is a real kick in the teeth.” (ITV)
Since Covid-19, the clubbing climate has not resumed its popularity. Young people are still socialising and drinking, just not where at the venues that have historically performed well. Many think it could be due to a change in behaviours during the pandemic, but with higher rent and the inflated prices of everyday goods, financial burdens on the working classes and younger generations are being felt throughout the nation. Venues are being forced to adapt, whether it’s free or cheap event tickets or 2 for 1 drinks, nightclubs have to bring in the crowds or face closure.