Footfall predicted to rise by 4.7% over the Bank Holiday weekend
New figures have shown that footfall is set to increase by 4.7% across UK high streets, shopping centres and retail parks over the upcoming three day Bank Holiday weekend.
Retail intelligence expert Springboard has predicted that the back to school retail rush will be as strong as shoppers take advantage of the rare occurrence of the Bank Holiday weekend coinciding with a national payday. As the weather is expected to brighten up, footfall on Bank Holiday Monday is forecast to see an uplift of 7.9% year-on-year.
Diane Wehrle, insights director at Springboard, explained: “Favourable inflation rates, low unemployment and evidence of UK-wide pay rises have given consumers a new bout of confidence. Retail spend is increasing with figures from the British Retail Consortium showing an increase of 3.2% year-on-year in non-food spend in the last quarter, and with fine weather expected this weekend we expect shoppers to venture out with new-found force.”
According to Springboard’s figures, downpours on Bank Holiday Monday in 2014 led high street footfall to plummet by 24% year-on-year on the day, resulting in a 7% drop over the full weekend. If the skies brighten this weekend, Springboard forecasts that footfall in high streets will rise by 6.3% year-on-year over the three days with Monday showing an increase of 12% if the weather is good.
Meanwhile, retail parks are expected to see a 6% rise year-on-year increase over the weekend, mainly due to an ever-improving leisure offer coupled with the prominence of ‘Click and Collect’ availability at these locations. Shopping centres will follow behind with footfall expected to edge up 0.5% year-on-year.
