Footfall Increases Across All Town Centres, but Gap from 2019 Levels Persists

  • UK retail footfall increased for the fifth consecutive week
  • Footfall rose in all types of town centres with a +7.1% increase in regional cities outside London and +3.3% in Central London
  • Overall footfall was +2.2% higher than the previous week
  • Friday saw an 8.7% rise in footfall, with a +11.5% increase in high streets
  • The gap from 2019 footfall levels widened to -21.2%
  • Footfall was 149% higher than the same week in 2021 during Lockdown 3
  • Diane Wehrle, insights director at Springboard, said the degree of uplift is tapering off

UK retail footfall has increased for the fifth consecutive week, according to Springboard. Footfall rose in all types of town centres, with regional cities outside London experiencing a +7.1% increase and Central London seeing a +3.3% rise. Overall footfall was up by +2.2% compared to the previous week, with the highest growth on Friday at +8.7%, particularly in high streets. However, the gap from 2019 footfall levels widened to -21.2%. Despite this, footfall was 149% higher than during Lockdown 3 in 2021. Diane Wehrle, insights director at Springboard, noted that while there is a rise in footfall, the rate of growth is slowing down and may be influenced by employees returning to offices outside London.

Factuality Level: 8
Factuality Justification: The article provides accurate and objective information about the increase in footfall across UK retail destinations, including specific numbers and comparisons to previous weeks and years. It also includes expert commentary on potential reasons for the observed trends.
Noise Level: 3
Noise Justification: The article provides relevant information about UK retail destinations’ footfall and compares it with previous weeks and years, but lacks in-depth analysis or exploration of underlying factors and consequences.
Financial Relevance: Yes
Financial Markets Impacted: Retail and related businesses
Financial Rating Justification: The article discusses changes in footfall in UK retail destinations, which can impact retail businesses’ revenue and potentially affect their financial performance.
Presence Of Extreme Event: No
Nature Of Extreme Event: Other
Impact Rating Of The Extreme Event: No
Extreme Rating Justification: There is no mention of an extreme event in the last 48 hours.

Reported publicly: www.retailsector.co.uk