Retail footfall returns to downward trend after September spike
After a brief rise in September, retail footfall has fallen again in October, as the number of feet on Britain’s streets returns to its downward trend.
Total UK footfall decreased by 1.1 per cent year on year in October, down from a rise of 3.3 per cent in September.
“While this will be disappointing for many retailers… it perhaps shouldn’t come as a surprise,” Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for Sensormatic, said.
“We expect to see a bumpy recovery as a myriad of market conditions – from the cost of living to shaky consumer confidence around the Budget – continue to make footfall performance volatile,” Sumpter added.
Consumer confidence had dipped ahead of the budget as Brits worried about potential increases to their tax bill. As it is, the only rise in tax which will affect most Brits – albeit indirectly – is the 1.2 per cent rise in employer national insurance contributions (NICs).
However, depending on who ends up paying for the tax, it could leave retail employers out of pocket.
MRI software found a similar dip in September, with their slightly softer figures showing a 0.6 per cent year on year drop in all UK retail destinations, led by a 0.8 per cent decline in high streets and 1.5 per cent in shopping centres. Retail parks saw footfall rise by 0.8 per cent.
Monthly total UK retail footfall (% change YOY)
Half-term move impacts footfall
The figures may not be as bad as they seem, with the year-on-year drop partially due to a shift in the school half term holidays, which this year spanned the final week of October and the first week of November. Last week, the holidays fell within the October reporting period.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: “October’s footfall figures showed a marginal decline compared to last year, primarily due to half-term moving out of the comparison.”
On a more positive note, Dickinson added that “retail parks continued to attract shoppers, as they saw positive footfall growth for the third consecutive month, [and] across England, the northern towns performed best, with Leeds and Liverpool seeing positive footfall last month.”
Plus, with Black Friday less than a month away and Christmas soon after that, retail stores and destinations are likely to see footfall rise as we head into November.