"Drab December" hits High Street footfall
January 3, 2025
Retail analysts report a decline in December footfall on UK high streets as poor weather and shaky consumer confidence took its toll on spending.
According to BRC-Sensormatic data, total UK footfall was down 2.2% in the five weeks to December 28 compared to 2023.
This was an improvement on November’s 4.5% decline, although this reflected the timing of Black Friday. This year’s December figure includes Black Friday, rather than November‘s figure, while the reverse was true in 2023.
High street footfall decreased by 2.7% in December on-year, up from minus 3.7% in November. Retail park footfall was unchanged in December, up from minus 1.1% in November. Shopping centre footfall decreased by 3.3% in December, improving from minus 6.1% in November.
For the three months to December – the "golden quarter for retail"
footfall decreased by 2.5% on-year.
- Helen Dickinson of the British Retail Consortium commented: “A drab December which saw fewer shoppers in all locations, capped a disappointing year for UK retail footfall. This means 2024 is the second year in a row where footfall has been in decline. Even the Golden Quarter, typically the peak of shopping activity, provided little relief, with footfall down over the period."
Andy Sumpter of Sensormatic who calculate the data added: "December's lacklustre performance compounds a disappointing end to 2024, marking the second consecutive year of declining store traffic. Retailers will now need to look afresh to 2025 and chart a course to adopt innovative strategies to reverse this trend or maximise the sales potential of fewer visitors, finding new ways to make each store visit count.”
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