Retail footfall in Wales took another hit in July as the washout weather saw shoppers avoid the high street. Last month’s downpours and strong winds helped to drive down retail footfall in Wales, according to new data from the Welsh Retail Consortium.
Welsh retail footfall decreased by -0.1% in July year-on-year. This was worse than the 海角视频 average increase of 1.8% (year-on-year).
Wales was one of three nations and regions in the 海角视频 to record a decrease in shopper numbers last month, alongside North West England (-0.3%) and West Midlands (-1.1%). It was also the only country to record a decline in footfall in July, with England, Scotland and Northern Ireland all recording an increase in footfall.
TOTAL FOOTFALL BY NATION AND REGION
Shopping centre footfall decreased by 3.6% in July (year-on-year). This was 3.6 percentage points worse than June.
Based on cities, Cardiff reported a decline in footfall of -1.1% year-on-year, 1.1 percentage points worse than June. It ranked ninth best for growth in the 海角视频 ahead of Birmingham (-1.4%) and Belfast (-1.6%).
TOTAL FOOTFALL BY CITY
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Sara Jones, head of the Welsh Retail Consortium, said: “It was a disappointing month for Welsh retail, as footfall failed to shine during a gloomy July. Whilst in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland shopper numbers were in positive territory, Wales was the only GB nation to see shopper numbers down when compared to July of the previous year. This will be sombre news for both businesses and consumers, who had been hoping for a strong summer of sales and signs of an economic recovery. Despite the undoubted pressure, footfall was down less than in the previous month and retailers will look ahead with cautious optimism to August, hoping to benefit from ambient footfall from the school holiday period.
“Retailers across Wales will continue to play their part by providing value and choice for consumers in these challenging times but there must be recognition of the growing pressures they face, both from subdued shopper numbers and Government imposed costs. With three consecutive months of negative growth this will add to calls for a freeze on business rates in next year’s budget. Removing this uncertainty around a potential multi-million-pound hike in rates would certainly go some way to alleviating the fears of the industry and allow for investments to be made to incentivise growth.”
Andy Sumpter, retail consultant EMEA for Sensormatic Solutions, said: “Footfall saw a bounce back into positive figures in July, reversing the slowdown experienced in May and June. While retailers will welcome the uptick in shopper traffic, it will be with a sense of practical positivity. Many will be mindful they continue to serve a cost-of-living consumer, who remains cautious - and may well become more so with the prospect of further interest rates threatening spending power in the mid- to long-term.
"Indeed, our data shows that much of the footfall recovery in July was shored up by strong performance in outlet retail, as shoppers turn to discount formats to make spend go further. And this is putting further pressure on retailers, already shouldering the burden of growing price sensitivity, to turn to discounting to drive demand. Even in the context of rising price sensitivity, discounting remains just one of many levers retailers can pull. By doubling down on value-driven but experience-led propositions, retailers can build on the store’s revival as the shopping channel of choice.”
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