February footfall figures reveal five-year low

The British Retail Consortium and Springboard have reported that footfall has continued to decline for the last 15 consecutive months, and this has been the weakest February in five years.

Figures show that footfall during 27th January to 23rd February fell by 2%, compared to the previous year where it fell by 0.2%. Footfall for the High Street dipped by 1.9%, retail parks footfall declined by 0.8% and shopping centre numbers show a decline of 3.4%.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive for the BRC, commented: “Consumers have been cautious in their spending, leading to the biggest drop in February footfall for five years. These figures echo the month’s poor Retail Sales figures, which saw weak growth, particularly in bricks-and-mortar stores. While real incomes have been rising over the last year, the uncertainty surrounding Brexit appears to be driving a needs-not-wants approach to shopping.

“Things could get a lot worse unless the Government is able to avoid a calamitous no-deal Brexit. Such a scenario would likely result in higher costs, higher prices and less choice for consumers – all of which would further harm struggling retailers. The Government must act to protect both consumers and retailers by ensuring there is no chance of a no-deal Brexit.”