Poor December footfall caps tough year for UK bricks and mortar stores

Much of the UK footfall progress made in the second half of 2021 was wiped out in December as surging Omicron cases and new work from home advice deterred many from shopping in-store, particularly in towns and city centres.

According to BRC and Sensormatic IQ research, total UK footfall slumped by 18.6% in December (Yo2Y), with a 2.9 percentage point decrease from October. This is below the three month average decline of 16.4%.

For the whole of 2021, total UK footfall was -33.2% (Yo2Y) below pre-pandemic levels, although this was up 19.3% (YoY) on 2020.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive at British Retail Consortium, says: “While UK footfall saw a moderate decline compared to previous months, it remained above levels of other major European economies, as the country avoided some of the more severe restrictions implemented elsewhere.”

She adds: “December footfall capped a challenging year for bricks and mortar stores, which saw footfall down one-third on pre-pandemic levels, though this was a significant improvement on 2020.”

“With Christmas out the way, time will tell if shoppers return to their local high streets to embrace January sales and the arrival of spring collections. Still, retailers may have to work twice as hard to tempt many consumers back into the cold this January.”

Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for Sensormatic Solutions, comments: “While there weren’t any formal government restrictions, aside from the Plan B mask wearing mandate, placed on retailers in December, concerns about the rapid spread of Omicron dealt a blow to shopper confidence, as consumers self-policed social contacts and limited shopping trips in a bid to save their own Christmases.”

“But this will have done little to save the Christmases of retail businesses, effectively stalling the high street’s recovery in the run up to their most important trading period, with shopper counts across all retail settings receding to the levels seen in August, wiping away the slow but steady footfall recovery and gains we had seen up until the start of November.”

He concludes: “With the booster vaccination programme being delivered at pace and some glimmers of hope that the Omicron wave maybe plateauing in some regions, retailers will be hoping that consumers’ cautious optimism returns, and with that a new year’s resolve to continue to support local high streets and bricks and mortar stores.”

Featured