60 percent of the catering establishments fear for their existence

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Empty restaurant tables in Dresden: "The situation in many cities is catastrophic"

They were not allowed to receive guests for weeks, but restaurants, cafes and hotels are open again. Nevertheless, numerous catering operators fear for their existence due to the corona crisis. In a survey by the German Hotel and Restaurant Association (Dehoga), around 60 percent of the participating companies said they were struggling to survive economically.

The sales are therefore well below the previous year's values, for the year as a whole the companies expect a decline of at least 51 percent on average. For the survey, the association interviewed 7,200 restaurateurs and hoteliers from August 3rd to 10th.

Accordingly, the companies complained about average sales losses of 60 percent for the period from January to July. The minus was particularly dramatic at 87 percent in April.

According to Dehoga, the fact that sales losses are also expected for the rest of the year despite the reopening is due, among other things, to the corona-related regulations. Due to the distance requirements, the capacity of the companies is limited by an average of 42 percent.

At the same time, the current picture in the industry is "very heterogeneous," said Dehoga President Guido Zöllick. "While the restaurants and hotels in the holiday regions are feeling confident, the situation of the businesses in many cities is still catastrophic." There were no tourists from abroad and especially business travelers; Trade fairs, congresses and meetings are still not taking place. All associated hotel and catering sales were lost. This is particularly fatal for business hotels and event caterers.

The situation in discos and clubs is particularly dramatic, for which there is still no opening perspective, said Zöllick: "The desperation of entrepreneurs is growing day by day. The companies do not know how to get through the crisis and fear a massive disco and club death. "

In order to prevent a "bankruptcy wave of undreamt-of proportions", the association calls for an extension of the short-time work allowance, a permanent instead of a year-long VAT reduction for the industry with the inclusion of beverages, an extension of the bridging aid and a legal regulation for corona-related Rent reduction. "Because the crisis is far from over," said Zöllick. "The fear of winter is great."

fdi / AFP