Time Out (TMO) has temporarily closed five of its markets in Lisbon and the US in response to the coronavirus and rebranded itself as ‘Time In’ in an effort to encourage social distancing. Its Time Out Market business, which consists of live venues that sell food and drink, was a key growth initiative for the group – management said in its half-year report that its performance had driven overall net revenue. The company had expected to open a site in Dubai this year, as well as two others in London by 2021.
The group said that it had not experienced any material impact on its trading since the outbreak, but in very recent days had seen a change in footfall to its markets and delays to advertising campaigns. Management noted in an update that it was not yet able to quantify the full trading impact of the virus.
