After suggesting that the UK retail market was hampered by stalled consumer spending in October, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) reportedly saw a recovery in foot traffic (footfall) in November, with total UK foot traffic down 0.7 percent year-over-year (Y0Y) for the four-week period ended November 25, a clear improvement from 5.7 percent decline posted in October.
The BRC reported:
- High Street footfall decreased by 1.7 percent in November (YoY), an improvement on a 4.6 percent decline in October.
- Retail Parks footfall decreased by 1.0 percent in November(YoY), an improvement on -4.3 percent in October.
- Shopping Centre footfall decreased by 2.2 percent in November(YoY), an improvement of -7.3 percent in October.
Of the individual UK countries, Wales saw the least significant drop in footfall, showing a decrease of just 0.4 percent YoY. Scotland saw footfall down 0.9 percent YoY, followed by England at 1.0 percent and Northern Ireland at 4.9 percent.
“A slight uptick in consumer confidence, as well as easing inflationary pressures and more predictable weather, led to an improvement in footfall compared to the previous month,” explained Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC. “After a slow October start, the month-long Black Friday sales helped to get shoppers out to their town and city centres. While all parts of the UK saw footfall drop in October, both West Midlands and Yorkshire managed positive growth in November.”
Photo courtest McArthurGlen, Wales
