• Storm Katie causes drop-off in shopper numbers
  • Boosted Good Friday followed by poor Saturday and worse Monday
  • Fashion and DIY retailers hardest hit

Retailers witnessed the ill effects of Storm Katie this weekend, as customers stayed away from high streets and shopping centres. 

After a boosted day of trading on sunny Good Friday with numbers rising 9.2%, shopper numbers fell 10.5% on bank holiday Monday as the storm brought wind and rain to much of the UK.

Visits to high streets and shopping centres dropped 12% and 3% respectively on Saturday, compared with last year, specialist analysts Springboard said. However retail park numbers edged up 2.5%. 

Shopping centre footfall plummeted 16% on Monday morning, figures revealed. 

 
 Index
Good FridayEaster SatEaster Mon Easter WeekendEaster Sun

High Street Index

16.4%

-11.8%

-11.5%

-4.9%

-9.9%

Retail Park Index

0.6%

2.5%

-1.2%

2.5%

-7.7%

Shopping Centre Index

2.0%

-2.7%

-16.0%

0.4%

1.3%

Springboard Index

9.2%

-6.4%

-10.5%

-1.9%

-6.5%

Other figures from the British Council of Shopping Centres and retail intelligence outfit FootFall showed that shopper numbers fell 1.3% in shopping centres and 3.5% in retail parks.  over the weekend.

Overall Easter weekend footfall in UK shopping centres was down –1.3% on last year and down –3.5% in UK retail parks, according to research by British Council of Shopping Centres (BCSC) and FootFall, the retail intelligence specialists.

The Easter bank holiday is traditionally a busy time for retailers, with DIY stores and garden centres cashing in and fashion retailers’ spring ranges catching the eye of consumers.

Springboard analyst Diane Wehrle said: “Easter Monday is usually the best day for high street retailers because people have finished all their DIY.

”However, as Storm Katie swept in, it seems shoppers have chosen to stay at home rather than venturing out into the wind and rain. Where we are in the budgetary cycle will have hit fashion retailers quite hard.”

 

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