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Consumers avoiding big-ticket buys - BRC
October 12, 2022
Consumer reluctance to make major purchases like furniture and flooring is coming through in latest sales data, says the British Retail Consortium.
UK retail sales increased 1.8% on a like-for-like basis from September 2021, but taking out food and groceries, there was a 1% decrease.
“While UK retail sales grew overall in September, this represented another month of falling sales volumes given high levels of inflation," says Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive |of the British Retail Consortium, "As consumer confidence continued to fall, people shopped cautiously, avoiding large ticket items such as new computers, TVs and furniture."
“A difficult winter looms for both retailers and consumers," she added. "Costs are increasing throughout retailers’ supply chain, the pound remains weak, interest rates are rising, and a tight labour market is pushing up the cost of hiring. All of this is making it harder for retailers to reduce prices and help struggling households."
The BRC says the retail industry urgently needs clarity from the government about business rates next year and is calling for a freeze in the multiplier. Without this, they say, retailers will face an £800m hike in their bills, which will inevitably put additional pressure on prices for UK consumers
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