Scottish smoking ban sees bingo takings fall

One of the UK’s biggest bingo chains today said revenues had fallen 14% in Scotland following the introduction of a smoking ban.

Mecca Bingo, which is owned by Rank Group, experienced a 6% drop in admissions, while spend per head was 9% lower in the 13 weeks since smoking was banned in public places north of the border.

With the chain operating 14 sites in Scotland, Rank said total revenues for the Mecca business were 1% lower in the 26 weeks to June 25.

In the early weeks of the ban in April, Mecca said it was likely players were taking smoking breaks between games rather than spending on other attractions, such as slot machines.

It also said it had invested in technology to increase the attractiveness of its interval games, which offer lower prizes than the main games but tend to be profitable for operators.

A ban on smoking in public places in England and Wales is due in the summer of 2007. Established in 1961, Mecca was acquired by Rank in the early 1990s and now has around five million members and 117 sites.

Rank also revealed today that it was considering the sale of its Hard Rock café business.

The café business grew like-for-like revenues by 8% at company-operated sites, with sales of food and beverages up by 10% and merchandise ahead 5%.

Rank said its decision to review future options for Hard Rock came as the operation entered a “new phase in its development”, including through expansion into the restaurant, casino and hotel markets.

“Accordingly, the board of Rank has decided to review the potential strategic options for Hard Rock, to assess whether or not Hard Rock should remain part of the Rank Group,” the company said.