EVN/BBCBoxing Day shoppers are staying away from the high street and shopping centres, compared to last year, preliminary footfall figures show.
Data collected by MRI software shows that there is a 12.3% drop in early morning pedestrians on UK high streets in 2023, while a 13.9% drop in visitors to shopping centers before 10:00 GMT. has been seen.
The provisional figures are an early sign that online shopping continues to dominate traditional Boxing Day sales.
Although many shops are expected to see brisk trade on Thursday, major retailers such as John Lewis, M&S and Next have opted not to open most of their stores, saying they will give their staff breaks over the festive period. want to give
Overall Boxing Day activity levels across all UK retail locations are 10.6% lower than at 10:00 on 26 December last year.
Analysts have told BBC News that bricks-and-mortar shops are becoming less profitable as rising energy costs make it more expensive to keep them open and, for some, bank holiday overtime for staff. Salary
Online shops are cheaper to operate and generally have lower overheads.
Jenny Mathews of MRI Software said footfall is expected to increase year-over-year from Dec. 27.
It said that, despite the early figures, it was expected that many shoppers would “wake up from their post-Christmas slumber to try and stock up on groceries and see what Boxing Day deals are available.” are”.
The company will release more footfall data later.
Data so far show that in-store visits are down about 50 percent from pre-pandemic levels.
UK retail parks, which often offer free parking and are more suited to larger shops, fared slightly better, seeing a decline of just 3.3% compared to the previous year.
In many ways Boxing Day is no longer a major shopping event in itself, as it once was.
Many retailers start their sales online in the run-up to Christmas and brands are also spreading promotions throughout the year, including around Black Friday in November.
Meanwhile, the cost of living is squeezing household budgets.
According to ONS data, the volume of sales in clothing stores recently fell to its lowest level since January 2022.
Randall Intelligence and Insights analyst Diane Wiehrle said among those choosing to go out on Boxing Day, the emphasis was on spending on things to do rather than things to buy.
He added that shopping habits have been changing for more than a decade as more and more consumers choose to shop online.
Barclays, which says it handles around 40 per cent of the country’s credit and debit card transactions, predicts Britons are set to spend a total of £4.6bn on Boxing Day, compared to £4.6bn in 2023. compared to £4.7bn made.
It says it expects the bulk of spending to take place online – as in 2023, when Boxing Day retail is expected to peak, according to bank figures. 63.9% of purchases were online.