Shopper traffic over the Christmas bank holiday remained almost a third down on pre-pandemic levels, falling to -27.8 per cent compared to 2019 across all retail settings on Monday 27 December, the latest data from Sensormatic Solutions showed. However, footfall saw a marked uptick yesterday (Tuesday 28 December), the second day of the Christmas bank holiday, recovering to -5.6 per cent year-on-2-year (Yo2Y), as shoppers put Omicron fears aside and headed out to bag a bargain, as retailers who had closed their stores on Boxing Day to give staff an extra day off re-opened.
Data from Sensormatic Solution’s footfall index, which captures 4 billion shopper visits globally, showed that retail parks performed the most strongly. Having seen a -33.5 per cent dip in shopper counts compared to pre-pandemic levels on Boxing Day itself, retail parks reported a +2.4 per cent increase in footfall yesterday (Tuesday 28 December) compared to 2019. However, High Street shopper traffic remained a quarter (-24 per cent) down, whilst shopping centres saw a third (-33 per cent) less visitors Yo2Y.
| Footfall Yo2Y (compared to pre-pandemic levels) | Boxing Day: Sun 28 December | Bank holiday: Mon 27 December | Bank holiday: Tues 28 December |
| High Street | -65.9% | -40% | -24% |
| Retail Parks | -33.5% | -20% | +2.4% |
| Shopping Centres | -58.2% | -48% | -33% |
Shopper numbers in London where the most subdued of the UK’s principal cities, down -22.7 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels. Despite tighter covid-19 restrictions coming into force in Scotland and Wales after Boxing Day, footfall in Glasgow was +2 per cent up compared to 2019, while Cardiff was just -1 per cent down Yo2Y, indicating consumer confidence in bricks-and-mortar shopping remains buoyed.
Andy Sumpter, EMEA Retail Consultant at Sensormatic Solutions, commented: “While the Boxing Day figures made for grim reading, there are some positive signs that shopper demand is righting itself, with footfall recovering to -5.6 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels yesterday, in spite of the concerns about Omicron and rising covid-19 infection numbers.”
“With many retailers having shut stores on Boxing Day itself, to give staff a well-deserved extra day off, consumers voted with their feet once stores re-opened, giving retailers cause for cautious optimism that improved trading over the extended Christmas holiday will continue,” he added.
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