A slump in the number of revellers at its Jumpin Jaks venues led to a disappointing Christmas for pub and nightclub operator Luminar Leisure.

The poor performance of the chain - which saw its competitive advantage of late opening hours wiped away with the introduction of new licensing laws - was largely behind Luminar's 1.7 per cent fall in sales across the festive period.

Sales at Luminar's nightclubs - including Creation and Event II in West Street, Brighton - rose 2.3 per cent in the five weeks to January 2. Chicago Rock Cafe, Luminar's other main non-nightclub interest, saw operating profits increase against Christmas trading in 2004.

Luminar said the performance of its venues such as Liquid and Oceana endorsed its strategy of strengthening its position as an operator of "destination" nightclubs.

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