Foot traffic down in shopping centers, up in high streets and retail parks

  • UK retail footfall declined by 7% last week compared to the previous week
  • Shopping centres had a -10.2% decline, retail parks -6.9%, and high streets -5.5%
  • Excluding Sunday, high streets and shopping centres saw -4.5% and -4.3% drops respectively
  • Retail parks experienced an 8.8% increase on Easter Monday
  • Footfall was +12.7% higher than the same week last year
  • Diane Wehrle, insights director at Springboard, attributed the decline to store closures on Easter Sunday and increased footfall on Easter Monday for groceries
  • Shopping centres underperformed high streets and retail parks from Monday to Thursday but rebounded on Friday and Saturday

UK retail footfall dropped by 7% last week compared to the previous one, with shopping centers experiencing a -10.2% decline, retail parks -6.9%, and high streets seeing a -5.5% drop, according to Springboard. Excluding Sunday, average weekly footfall decreased by -4.5% in high streets and -4.3% in shopping centers, while retail parks saw a stronger -0.6%. Easter Monday saw an 8.8% increase in foot traffic. Despite the decline from the previous week, the gap to 2019 levels narrowed (-12.8%) compared to the prior two-week period (-15.4%). Compared to the same week last year, footfall was up by 12.7%. Diane Wehrle, Springboard’s insights director, explained that store closures on Easter Sunday and increased grocery shopping on Easter Monday impacted the numbers. Shopping centers underperformed high streets and retail parks from Monday to Thursday but bounced back on Friday and Saturday.

Factuality Level: 10
Factuality Justification: The article provides accurate and objective information about the changes in footfall across different types of retail destinations in the UK, citing data from Springboard. It presents the numbers clearly and includes expert commentary to provide context and analysis.
Noise Level: 3
Noise Justification: The article provides relevant information about the changes in UK retail footfall and offers insights from an expert’s perspective. It stays on topic and supports its claims with data. However, it could benefit from more analysis or context to make it more informative and actionable.
Financial Relevance: Yes
Financial Markets Impacted: UK retail sector
Financial Rating Justification: The article discusses changes in footfall across UK retail destinations, which can impact the performance of retail companies and potentially affect their financial results.
Presence Of Extreme Event: No
Nature Of Extreme Event: Other
Impact Rating Of The Extreme Event: Minor
Extreme Rating Justification: There is no extreme event mentioned in the text. The article discusses a decline in footfall across UK retail destinations, but it’s not an extreme event as it’s related to shopping trends and not a natural disaster, financial crisis, political crisis, etc.

Reported publicly: www.retailsector.co.uk