UK consumer footfall declined by 1% in May compared to the same month last year, according to the latest data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
This figure marks the first decrease since February, and is below the three-month average of 0.7%.
High street footfall decreased by 2%, and shopping centre footfall was down by 1.3%. However the number of consumers going to retail parks grew by 1.5%
Falling Figures
“After the Easter boost in shopper numbers to retail destinations, footfall fell in May, which was mirrored in the month’s sales performance," said Helen Dickinson, chief executive of BRC.
"But it wasn’t just shops that suffered; poor weather at the beginning of the month kept people indoors and made it a poor month for footfall in general with fewer people out and about."
Dickinson noted that high street stores were affected the most, experiencing "the steepest decline since June last year" following several months of growth.
Sales Performance
Diane Wehrle, marketing and insights director at Springboard, added that "May was clearly a month of moderation for UK shoppers".
"The drop in footfall was mirrored by a drop of 3.7% in UK sales – with fashion spend in particular dipping in May. These are clear signals that consumers have started to display greater spending restraint."
"However, April's results were boosted by the shift in Easter from March in 2016 to April this year, so it is unsurprising that there was a downward shift in footfall from last month, particularly as UK consumers could feel additionally cautious in the lead up to the General Election.”
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
