Footfall drops as rising energy costs hit households

Footfall dropped in some parts of the UK last week (October 2-8) compared to the week before, indicating the increasing potential impact of the rise in energy prices on households which came in on Oct 1. 

According to figures released by Springboard, footfall slipped by 0.2 per cent on the previous week across all UK retail destinations, with the biggest drop seen in shopping centres and retail parks. 

Compared with 2021, UK footfall halved to +5.1 per cent from +10.6 per cent in the week before across all retail destinations, with a greater proportionate impact on retail parks where the uplift from 2021 contracted to +0.7 per cent from +3.4 per cent in the week before last. 

The largest week-on-week decline was seen in the North and Yorkshire where footfall dropped by -2.4 percent. Seven out of 10 regions tracked by Springboard saw declining footfall last week – with an average drop of -1.6 per cent. 

The three UK areas which saw an uplift in footfall were modest, at +3.9 per cent in the East, +1.4 per cent in Greater London and +0.1 per cent in the South East. 

The gap from the 2019 footfall level improved marginally to -10.8 per cent from -11.2 per cent in the previous week across all UK retail destinations. 

“It may be a little premature to draw definitive conclusions, however, the comprehensive drop in footfall across nearly all parts of the UK may well be an initial indicator of the impact on consumers of higher energy costs that came into effect on 1 October,” Diane Wehrle, Insights Director at Springboard, said. 

“This is a clear contrast to the week before last when footfall rose universally across all areas of the UK.”