Minor improvement in January shopper numbers

Shopper numbers have seen a minor uplift in January, with a 1.5 percentage point improvement on December in total UK footfall, according to the BRC-Sensormatic IQ Footfall Monitor.

However, when compared to pre-pandemic January 2020, footfall declined by 17.1 per cent, as restrictions to tackle Omicron coronavirus variant forced people to stay home.

Shopping centres have suffered the worst, with a decline of 37.5 per cent from 2020, followed by high street with a decline of 24.2 per cent. Retail parks saw footfall decrease by 13 per cent.

“It was a slow start to 2022, with only minor improvements to UK footfall despite a significant decline in Covid cases,” Helen Dickinson, chief executive of British Retail Consortium (BRC), said.

“Indeed, it was quality over quantity in January; less people visited retail parks and shopping centres, but those who did went to more stores at each location. It is likely the January sales influenced this behaviour, encouraging consumers to shop around in their quest to find the best deals.”

Northern Ireland again saw the shallowest footfall decline of all regions at -9.5 per cent, followed by Scotland at -16.2 per cent and Wales at -16.9 per cent. England saw the deepest decline at -19.8 per cent, with London yet to benefit from the end of Plan B measures announced in mid-January.

“As we emerge out of the Omicron wave and the return to the office gains momentum, we are hopeful footfall will continue to improve. Yet, even as restrictions are eased, retail footfall will not return to pre-pandemic levels any time soon. This poses a challenge to many town and city centre retailers who continue be impacted to from lower commuter numbers,” Dickinson added.

Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for Sensormatic Solutions, commented: “While total retail shopper traffic improved marginally on December’s figures, footfall’s recovery remains plateaued.  January became the fourth successive month in which shopper counts struggled to reach the highest recovery levels seen back in October.

“With the Government dropping Covid Plan B curbs and work from home guidance, retailers will be hoping consumer confidence will also return along with the commuter trade to boost footfall and put a spring back in to the step of the high street’s recovery.”