Singing the blues

“We will keep witnessing closures of venues and bankruptcies every month, especially the small, less established outlets. This has always been the case, but [in 2013] the rate of these closures will increase and profitability will drop across the sector.” Marwan Ayoub, Managing and Founding Partners at Venture Hospitality “2011 was a very good year for us, one of the best years ever for Sushi Bar. 2012 started well, even better than the previous year, up until May when the drop was kick-started. Depending on the outlet, we are somewhere between 11 percent and 19 percent below last year, which constitutes a substantial decrease, but not a major loss.” Mario Haddad Junior, owner of Sushi Bar, Falamanki and Jasmine Room “If the regional situation continues like this, we will be facing a bigger crisis as tourists continue to avoid Lebanon, and overseas expats fear visiting. Already, the high tourist season