Most Brits visited a retail destination during October and November 2024, shows a recent report, highlighting the resilience of physical retail.
According to the latest Consumer Pulse Report by MRI Software, in partnership with Retail Economics, 88 per cent of the UK population visited a retail destination during October and November 2024 — an increase of 86.1 per cent since May 2024. The report also reports an average of 2.2 visits per person per month.
The latest survey reveals that 31 per cent of office workers play a key role in high street retail, with visits peaking during lunch hours.
33 percent of office workers choose to visit after 5pm on weekdays, particularly Tuesdays and Wednesdays which are popular days to venture into the office.
As return to office becomes more widespread, the retail sector has an opportunity to maximise engagement and sales by leveraging these insights and presenting itself as a convenient shopping option for the hybrid workforce.
The under-35 demographic is increasingly motivated by experiential retail opportunities, such as dining and leisure. In November, this age group averaged 9.5 visits to physical retail destinations — more than double the frequency of those aged 55 and over. The rise of social commerce, which enables shoppers to make purchases within social media apps such as TikTok and Instagram, is likely influencing footfall into physical retail destinations and creating opportunities for in-store experiences.
“The latest findings depict a retail sector that continues to adapt and remain relevant as consumer behaviours shift,” commented Jenni Matthews, Marketing & Insights Director, MRI Software.
“With 88 per cent of the UK population visiting retail destinations and under-35s driving experiential trends, it’s clear that physical retail remains a powerful touchpoint for engagement.
“Retailers have an incredible opportunity to leverage these insights—not just to meet consumer expectations, but to exceed them by creating vibrant, immersive destinations that align with changing consumer behaviours.”
Retail leaders are prepared for a challenging start to 2025 following the Autumn Budget, bringing with it financialpressures and rising costs.
Consumers are already erring on the side of caution, as 51 per cent of shoppers remain concerned about the rising cost of living over the next six months. This figure is down from 60 per cent in May 2024, suggesting a gradual improvement in consumer confidence.
However, affordability remains top of mind, with shoppers prioritising value and cautious spending.
Small businesses are "18 times less likely" to offer an apprenticeship scheme as compared to large businesses, a recent report has claimed, adding that some small businesses are not taking proactive steps to recruit apprentices from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
Co-op in a report released on Monday (10) points out how more than a third (38 per cent) of school leavers face a lack of apprenticeship opportunities in their local area.
Co-op finds that two in three (68 per cent) school leavers agree that apprenticeships are more important now than in previous years, with almost half (48 per cent) seeing an apprenticeship as the most beneficial way of entering the world of work.
However, despite those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds being more likely to apply for an apprenticeship (73 per cent v 66 per cent), many are facing barriers to accessing apprenticeships.
Co-op’s research also included a survey of business leaders, which found that seven in ten agree that a socioeconomic gap exists when it comes to hiring apprentices. It also finds that small businesses are 18 times less likely to offer an apprenticeship scheme compared to large businesses.
Amongst those that do, one in five small businesses are not taking proactive steps to recruit apprentices from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
The top reasons for this lack of proactive recruitment include: a lack of time and resources (38 per cent), uncertainty about how to access diverse talent pools (33 per cent), insufficient funding to support apprenticeship programmes (29 per cent), and concerns over increased training costs (14 per cent).
Furthermore, businesses in less advantaged areas lack higher level apprenticeship schemes, with only a quarter (26 per cent) of business leaders in these areas offering level six or seven apprenticeships, states the report.
Claire Costello, Co-op’s Chief People and Inclusion Officer, says, “The research paints a picture of the real and widespread relationship between an individual’s socioeconomic background and their unequal access to apprenticeship opportunities post-school.
"There has never been a more important time for the Government and UK businesses to stand up to reality and do more to ensure access to apprenticeships is fair and equitable for all young people.
"Someone’s background should not limit their career potential which is why we’re calling on an amendment to the IfATE Bill - to level the playing field so everyone can have a fair shot at reaching their full potential.”
The research comes as Co-op has written to the Education Secretary calling on the Government to give Skills England a statutory duty to improve social mobility across the country.
January sales kicked off a solid month for retail with stores delivering their strongest growth in almost two years, shows industry report released today (11).
According to retail body British Retail Consortium (BRC), UK total retail sales increased by 2.6 per cent year on year in January, against a growth of 1.2 per cent in January 2024. This was above the 3-month average growth of 1.1 per cent and above the 12-month average growth of 0.8 per cent.
Food sales increased by 2.8 per cent year on year in January, against a growth of 6.1 per cent in January 2024. This was above the 3-month average growth of 2.3 per cent and below the 12-month average growth of 3 per cent, shows BRC report.
Commenting on the figures, Helen Dickinson OBE, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said, “January sales kicked off a solid month for retail with stores delivering their strongest growth in almost two years, albeit on a weak comparable.
"Consumers headed to the shops to refresh their homes for the year ahead, taking advantage of big discounts on furniture, bedding and other home accessories.
"With growth across nearly all categories, only toys and baby equipment remained in decline. While the bouts of stormy weather put a temporary dampener on demand, sales growth held up well throughout the rest of the month. This was also helped by the earlier start of the reporting period, adding a few more post-Christmas shopping days into the mix.
“Whether this strong performance can hold out for the coming months is yet to be seen. Inflationary pressures are rising, compounded by £7bn of new costs facing retailers, including higher employer national insurance contributions, higher National Living Wage, and a new packaging levy.
"Many businesses will be left with little choice but to increase prices, and cut investment in jobs and stores. Government can mitigate this by ensuring its proposed business rates reforms do not result in any shop paying more in business rates.”
Commenting on food and drink sector performance, Sarah Bradbury, CEO of IGD, said, "The current climate of economic uncertainty is reflected in IGD’s January shopper confidence index, which has declined by 3 points.
"With unemployment at 4.4 per cent (+0.4 per cent vs this time last year), shoppers have responded by employing strategies to control their spend.
"The notable increase in volume over value sales suggests a shift towards private label products and a change in purchasing categories, as shoppers anticipate further price rises for food and drink.”
Sales of low and no-alcohol beer were 20 per cent higher in December than January, shows recent data, suggesting that traditionally the month of abstinence has been overtaken by December in terms of alcohol consumption.
According to a recent report in The Times, supermarket Tesco experienced record demand for alcohol-free beverages in the four weeks running up to Christmas with sales up by more than 15 per cent on the previous year. The demand was largely driven by young Brits.
According to David Albon, a beer and cider buyer at Tesco, quite contrary to five years ago when the main demand for no and low drinks came in ‘dry January’, it is now a trend, especially in young people, to moderate drinking at these key occasions of the year as well.
“It’s a very different picture to what we were seeing, even just five years ago, when the main demand for no and low drinks came in ‘dry January’.”
Tesco confirmed that interest in dry January is still growing, with demand for no and low-alcohol wine particularly strong during the month and sales up 15 per cent. Sales of alcohol-free beer were up 10 per cent and alcohol-free spirits up 5 per cent.
Among the most popular choices from the chain in January were 12-packs of Corona 0.0%, with demand up by more than 250 per cent ,and 10-packs of Guinness 0.0, up by more than 100 per cent.
Tesco says the nation’s changing relationship with booze is seeing sales of alcohol-free drinks increase across every month of the year. It added that the increasing quality of low and no-alcohol alternatives was encouraging consumers to buy in multi-pack sizes rather than single bottles or cans.
Another trend giving momentum to alcohol-free range is "zebra stripping", when people alternate between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks on a celebratory night in order not to get too drunk.
In the words of Sarah Holland, a buyer at Waitrose, 2024 has certainly been the year of zebra striping, driven by the wonderful variety of delicious no and low which are available on the market now.
This comes weeks after IWSR data reported similar picture.
The firm stated that the total UK no and low market is expected to have more than doubled in 2024 versus 2023. Preliminary data shows no-alcohol beer grew 20 per cent in 2024 vs 2023 while alcohol-free beer now accounts for more than 2 per cent of total beverage alcohol market sales in the UK, highlighting just how big a part the subcategory is beginning to play in the overall drinks sector.
IWSR added that growth of no-alcohol spirits has slowed, but is expected to have grown +7 per cent in 2024 vs 2023 while sales of low-alcohol wine fell -5 per cent in 2024 vs 2023, no-alcohol wine grew by +8 per cent.
Cost of living is still consumers’ number one concern, shows recent data, highlighting how shoppers are turning to scratch cooking to both save money and have a healthier diet.
According to new data released today byNielsenIQ (NIQ), total till sales grew at UK supermarkets (+5.3 per cent) in the last four weeks ending 27th January 2025, up from +3.6 per cent recorded in December.
With a better outlook on food inflation (+1.6 per cent) compared to last year (+6.4 per cent), there was good unit growth of +0.9 per cent at the Grocery Multiples. However, growth slowed after the new year.
January is typically a time of year for a healthy reset for consumers, and NIQ data shows 12 per cent of British households purchased meat-free substitutes in the last four weeks. Whilst this is a small drop from 14 per cent last year, shoppers have not cut back on healthy diets with double-digit growth in freshly prepared fruit (+16 per cent) and fresh veg accompaniments which grew by +9 per cent.
Meat, fish and poultry was the fastest growing super category (+9.1per cent) as shoppers sought to cook protein-rich meals as part of New Year diets. This was followed by pet care (+8.3 per cent) and dairy products (+6.8 per cent).
In addition, NIQ data shows that half of all UK households now say they cook from scratch every day or most days, with around 16 per cent doing so more due to the rising cost of living.
The impact of this shift in behaviour marks a spike in demand for easy hacks to speed up or elevate the dining experience, with a boost in sales for fresh gravy (+28 per cent), fresh dough and pastry (+18 per cent), fresh dips (+15 per cent) and fresh cream and custard (+14 per cent).
In terms of retailer performance, Ocado led with a sales growth of +15.6 per cent compared with the same period last year.
This was followed by Marks & Spencer (+9.7 per cent) helped by its bigger store formats motivating shoppers to add more items to their baskets as well as its dine-at-home deals. There was also continued growth at the discounters Lidl (+7.8 per cent) and Aldi (+3.8 per cent) with both retailers gaining new shoppers and more store visits.
Mike Watkins, Head of Retailer and Business Insight at NIQ said, “The lift to grocery sales in the last four weeks was helped by the timing of the New Year, with a proportion of sales coming from the new year festivities which was week ending 4th January (+10.0 per cent).
"However, after this, weekly growth in January was slightly lower. Whilst overall Total Till sales growth was higher than December, the underlying trend is closer to +3 per cent which is the average growth in the most recent three weeks.”
Watkins adds, “NIQ Homescan data shows that the cost of living is still firmly consumers’ number one concern at the start of 2025. Shoppers are looking to save money and eat healthier leading to a growing trend in scratch cooking, which is one of the key behaviours driving the strong unit growth (+2 per cent) and value growth (+6.8 per cent) in fresh food categories in the last four weeks.”
Using cash not only affects consumer spending habits but also supports a deep psychological sense of ownership - something rarely experienced with digital transactions, shows a new research exploring how different payment methods influence spending behaviour.
The study, published in Qualitative Market Research in late 2024, reinforce the well-documented advantages of cash, such as its accessibility, resilience, and data privacy.
The study concludes that "when we handle cash, we are not just spending money; we are parting with a piece of ourselves." While digital payments are undoubtedly convenient, the research underscores the vital role cash continues to play in both monetary systems and society.
Cash remains the most inclusive payment method, accessible to everyone, including the elderly, unbanked individuals, and those in rural areas, states the report. With increasing bank closures, access to cash has been under threat.
However, new laws from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulations introduced in September 2024 ensure continued protection and improvement of cash access for businesses and consumers alike.
During natural disasters, power outages, and cyberattacks, cash serves as a crucial fail-safe. Unlike digital payments, which depend on electricity and internet connectivity, cash transactions remain unaffected, ensuring that businesses can continue operating in critical situations, states the report.
As digital transactions grow, so do concerns over data privacy and fraud risks. Cash payments remain anonymous, providing consumers with peace of mind that their financial activities are not being monitored or exploited.
A 2021 white paper study from cash handling specialists Volumatic highlighted strong consumer demand for payment choice, with many preferring a combination of cash and digital methods. A diverse payment ecosystem strengthens economic stability, allowing banks and businesses to mitigate risks associated with system failures and cyber threats.
Mike Severs, Sales & Marketing Director at Volumatic, said: “With the upcoming rise in National Insurance and the National Living Wage rates, coupled with increasing business costs, we understand the challenges businesses face. Investing in cash handling equipment not only boosts efficiency but also improves financial performance - further proving the enduring value of cash.
“With cash usage on the rise and its benefits extending beyond financial considerations to consumer well-being, businesses must adapt to customer preferences.
"Offering a choice between cash and digital payments is key to meeting customer needs and ensuring a resilient, stable economy.”
For retailers concerned about handling and processing cash, innovative solutions from Volumatic offer seamless and secure management. As experts in cash handling technology, Volumatic provides tailored solutions that enhance efficiency while reducing costs.
Volumatic’s all-in-one cash-handling solution, the CounterCache intelligent (CCi), has helped retail businesses cut cash processing costs by up to 75 per cent. Acting as a secure storage device, forgery detector, and cash counter, the CCi - when paired with CashView Enterprise software - delivers real time reporting and full visibility from POS to bank deposit.
For businesses seeking simpler solutions, Volumatic also offers a range of money-counting scales, friction note counters and secure deposit devices - designed to improve efficiency and security while saving valuable time and resources.