BRC: Footfall stumbles ahead of Christmas

We now include a bullet on YoY footfall changes. These figures are positive as, while retail remains below its pre-pandemic levels, it has continued to improve over the past year. In January we aim to return to focusing on YoY figures but will also provide a comparison to pre-pandemic levels for continuity.

Covering the four weeks 30 October – 26 November 2022

According to BRC-Sensormatic IQ data: 

• Total UK footfall decreased by 13.3% in November (Yo3Y), 1.5 percentage points worse than October. This is worse than the 3-month average decline of 11.5%.

• • High Streets footfall declined by 13.6% in November (Yo3Y), 2.0 percentage points worse than last month's rate, and worse than the 3-month average decline of 12.3%.

• • Retail Parks saw footfall decrease by 4.2% (Yo3Y), 0.5 percentage points worse than last month's rate and worse than the 3-month average decline of 2.7%.

• • Shopping Centre footfall declined by 23.2% (Yo3Y), 1.4 percentage points worse than last month's rate and worse than the 3-month average decline of 22.6%.

• Northern Ireland saw the shallowest footfall decline of all regions at -7.0%, followed by Scotland at -15.0% and England at -15.4%. Wales saw the steepest decline at -16.2%.

• On a YoY basis, Total footfall increased by 3.7%; High Streets by 8.0% and Shopping Centres by 7.0%. Retail Parks decreased by 4.0%.

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

“Footfall took another stumble as the cost of living crisis put off some consumers from visiting the shops in November. Others opted to stay home due to the scattering of rail strikes, or chose the World Cup over shopping visits. Many big cities were particularly hard hit, with Birmingham, Bristol and Manchester all seeing the biggest drops in footfall since January.

“Rising inflation and low consumer confidence continue to dampen spending expectations in the run up to Christmas. Despite retailers doing their best to keep prices as low as possible for their customers, financial concerns are trumping spending for many households. But, with three more weeks to Christmas, retailers hope that the festive spirit may still give a welcome boost to both footfall and retail sales.”

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

“As retailers readied themselves for the start of peak trading ‘proper’, November brought a slew of disruption and opportunity, almost in equal measure.  While train strikes did spell disruption to many, concerns that the untested format of a ‘Christmas World Cup’ could take the shine off retailers’ Black Friday efforts proved unfounded, with the results in-store bettering the results on the field for England and Wales. With footfall on Black Friday surpassing 2021 levels, retailers will be hoping this signposts a resilience in consumer demand, even in the context of the rising cost-of-living, as they head into the critical December Christmas trading period.”

MONTHLY TOTAL UK RETAIL FOOTFALL (% CHANGE ON PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS)

UK FOOTFALL BY LOCATION (% CHANGE ON PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS)

YEAR-ON-YEAR RETAIL FOOTFALL (% CHANGE ON 2021)

This data is being provided for future continuity, as we intend to eventually return from Yo3Y data to YoY.

TOTAL FOOTFALL BY NATION AND REGION (% CHANGE ON 2019)

TOTAL FOOTFALL BY CITY (% CHANGE ON 2019)

-ENDS-

Methodology:

UK Total Footfall is calculated by using precise shopper numbers entering stores in the UK, whichever destination they are located. Likewise, High Street footfall uses exact numbers of shoppers entering stores on UK high streets. As Retail Parks and Shopping Centres are shopping destinations themselves, their totals have been calculated using precise numbers of shoppers entering the premises rather than individual stores within them. Therefore, the UK Total Footfall figure is not calculated by averaging the three individual shopping destinations.