Mention should also be made of the buoyant coffee shop and gourmet soup outlets in the other fast food sector, which have witnessed strong growth in the last 12 months. Small operators dominate in terms of numbers but the fast food sector, more than any other catering sector, has a number of companies, which dominate sales in their market. These five also dominate main media advertising expenditure in the sector. The distinction between pubs and other drinking establishments such as caf bars and wine bars is becoming blurred and some consumers, particularly women and a younger clientele, are switching to these latter, more informal outlets. In a market that is growing only marginally, the larger branded pubs are taking market share from the smaller, unbranded outlets.
Drinks continue to take the largest share of pub sales but sales of alcoholic drinks are in decline.
Many pubs have turned to food to offset the decline in drinks sales. Mergers and acquisitions have been regular occurrences in the pub sector in the last few years, as the larger pub owners have sold off packages of unwanted pubs while newer pub companies have expanded their portfolios. In 1999, for example, over 6,000 pubs changed hands. There has also been a decline in the number of pubs over the last decade. In 1990, there were an estimated 54,000 pubs but, by 1999, this number had fallen to 50,500.