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Mar 14, 2016
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UK footfall down 1.1% in February

Published
Mar 14, 2016

The latest figures from BRC/Springboard show that footfall in the UK was down 1.1% in February. This is a marked decline from January's strong performance, when footfall was up 1.2%. It's also below the three-month average rate of 0.8%.


New West End


Retail park locations saw footfall increase by 2.5%, down from January's 5.2% rise, but high streets and shopping centres both reported a decline. Footfall on the high street was down 2.9%, while shopping centres posted a 0.6% drop. The only regions to see an increase in footfall were the South West, up 0.4%, and Greater London, up 0.2%.

The footfall decline was deepest in Northern Ireland, where footfall fell by 5.1%, its lowest figure for three months. Footfall in Scotland was down 3.1% after two consecutive months of positive growth.

Helen Dickinson OBE, BRC Chief Executive, said: “While footfall last month eased down a touch in both year-on-year and three-month totals, these relatively tepid figures do not fully reflect the changing nature of retail as an industry. Retailers are competing with each other harder than ever. The business of retailing is increasingly complex as technology continues to drive changes in the way we shop."

Diane Wehrle, Marketing and Insights Director at Springboard, said: “The drop in footfall again last month is consistent with long term underlying trends identified by Springboard from tracking activity across destination types, geographies and time periods. Visits are becoming increasingly focused out of town and in the early evening, with footfall after 5pm rising since January 2014 whilst dropping during the daytime period. The “5pm to 8pm social” period are becoming important trading hours with spend focused towards hospitality and leisure, and destinations with a buoyant restaurant offer, providing the right environment and price points make out of home dining and socialising easy, attractive and affordable."

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