London’s West End poised for £115m Black Friday bonanza

Businesses in Oxford Street, Regent Street, Bond Street and the surrounding roads are preparing to rake in the record-breaking revenues, which would represent a 5% uplift on Black Friday sales last year.

The sales bonanza will boost a predicted £2.34bn till receipt in the West End during the six weeks running up to Christmas.

The region is expecting £51.5m to be spent per day during the crucial trading period – or £5.1m per hour.

But Black Friday is poised to perform well above that average, as retailers including John Lewis, Debenhams and House of Fraser take part in a day of discounts.

Many will also throw open their doors earlier and close later in order to take full advantage of the predicted influx of bargain-hungry consumers.

UK shopper spend ‘strong’

The New West End Company said spending from international shoppers, which has been buoyed by the slide in value of the pound since the Brexit vote, will contribute to the sales spike, but it also expects domestic spend to be “strong” across the Black Friday weekend.

New West End Company’s managing director for trading environment Steven Medway said: “We’re looking forward to welcoming visitors from across the UK and around the world to the West End this weekend.

“However, future challenges including further Brexit uncertainty and the prospect of business rates revaluation in April 2017, which will force West End businesses to pay an additional £125m a year in taxes, suggest a tough year ahead for retail trading.”