UK retailers hit hard by coronavirus powered Slump Saturday

Super Saturday, the last Saturday before Christmas, saw UK footfall drop by 40% year-on-year, according to research by Sensormatic.

Data from ShopperTrak, which captures 40 billion shopper visits each year, showed that high streets were particularly badly affected, with footfall plummeting -44% on Super Saturday compared to 2019.

Retail parks, still down on 2019, fared a little better, only down 24% thanks to their tenant mix, which usually includes essential retail businesses, such as out-of-town supermarkets.

Andy Sumpter, Sensormatic’s EMEA Retail Consultant for ShopperTrak, comments: “Dampened by rising coronavirus cases, many shoppers stayed away, leaving this year’s Super Saturday more of a Slump Saturday for retailers.”

“Many people will also have already completed their Christmas shopping in a bid to avoid a last minute rush to stores, contributing to the falling footfall numbers.”

With the rumours of tightening coronavirus restrictions circulating on Saturday morning, before the Prime Minister’s announcement that 16.4million people in London and the south east would be plunged into Tier 4, shoppers made a last minute dash to pick up gifts and Christmas essentials.

Shopping centres in the south east saw footfall down -26%, compared to the -39.9% dip in shopper traffic in shopping centres nationally.

“With Tier 4 restrictions now already in place, this will be yet another grim blow to retailers, who will see stores once again closed. In what are usually the busiest trading days for the high street in the run up to Christmas, many businesses now risk losing a significant – and much needed – boost to revenues,” Sumpter comments.

“It will be critical to the survival of the high street that, when retail is once again allowed to reopen, shoppers have the confidence to return to stores. Retailers have already invested heavily in keeping shoppers safe so they can continue to support the communities they serve.”

“Now they will be reliant on the public investing in them by voting with their feet and choosing to ‘use or lose’ the businesses on their high street,” he concludes.