Shopper numbers down this Easter
Latest figures from SPSL’s Retail Traffic Index (RTI )show that fewer people went shopping over this year’s Easter weekend than last year; despite it falling three weeks later and generally having far better weather.
On Good Friday shopper numbers were down by 5.5% year-on-year, followed on Saturday by a drop of 4.2% and on Bank Holiday Monday by an even larger fall of 7.4%. Most shops are, of course, legally obliged to close on Easter Sunday.
Dr Tim Denison, Director of Knowledge Management at SPSL explains; “Despite the outcome for Easter shopping being a surprise for some commentators, these figures are very much as we had expected at SPSL and fall in line with our forecast of a 3.9% drop against 2005 over the full holiday fortnight.
“Usually we would expect to see more shoppers out and about over a late Easter, with people readily embarking on spring cleaning, DIY, home and gardening projects. This year, however, the subdued housing market, in particular, is quelling enthusiasm for home improvement plans, but underlying that there is clearly an increasing reticence to shop and spend at will.
“The RTI shows that shopper numbers across the UK for the first Quarter of 2006 were down 6.4% year-on-year. Despite ever more competitive prices and offers from retailers, the rising general costs of living are dissuading consumers from shopping as freely as they have over the last decade. People are becoming increasingly selective in where they shop and on what they spend their disposable income, and this will undoubtedly be reflected in retailers’ performances once the numbers are released.
“Only retailers with a strong affinity with consumer tastes, needs and lifestyles will continue to attract brisk business, but others will already be hurting. Those that are under pressure will likely not simply take the risk of sitting it out and trying to see it through; things have already gone too far for that. We’re expecting to see some exciting and even radical changes in retailers’ strategy develop over the course of the spring and summer.”
