BRC: Jubilant improvement to UK footfall

This release is separate to the monthly BRC-Sensormatic IQ Footfall Monitor, and provides insights into the footfall over the week leading up to, and including, the Jubilee weekend. Rather than using Year-on-Pre-Pandemic (Yo3Y) figures, we are instead comparing the Jubilee week to average footfall throughout May 2022.

 According to BRC-Sensormatic IQ data: 

• Total UK footfall increased by 6.9% over the Jubilee weekend, compared with the average for May 2022.  
  • Total UK footfall for the whole week increased by 17.1%, compared to the average for May 2022
    
    
• Thursday was the best performing day, with a 45.6% improvement in footfall, followed by Wednesday at 44.4%, compared with the average for May 2022.  
  
  
• High Streets saw the strongest performance at 3.1% growth, compared with the average for May 2022.  
  
  
• London saw footfall improve by 4.4% over the Jubilee weekend, compared with the average for May 2022.  
  • London footfall for the whole week increased by 9.3%, compared to the average for May 2022
    
    

Helen Dickinson OBE, Chief-Executive of British Retail Consortium, said: 

“The public took to the streets for the Jubilee celebrations, with retail footfall enjoying significant improvements over the early parts of the long weekend. More people hit the shops, with many on the hunt for Jubilee decorations, garden accessories and new outfits. Friday saw the best footfall as the public readied for a weekend of celebrations, from street parties to festivals. It was great to see so many people out celebrating and shopping at their favourite local destinations – a welcome boost for retail businesses reliant on store performance, particularly on the high street. We hope that the momentum can continue despite the ongoing economic turbulence.”

Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for Sensormatic Solutions, commented: 

“Retailers experienced a ‘Jubilee Jump’ in footfall, as the celebrations prompted shopper traffic on the High Steet to rise.  Whether it was people stocking up on supplies for the bank holiday weekend, attending street parties or using the extra public holidays to socialise with friends and family, the retail benefited from welcome ambient footfall from the celebrations.”