Heatwave conditions continued to weigh heavily on shopper footfall in July, with the high street particularly badly hit, according to figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-Sensormatic.
July Footfall Decline
Total UK footfall dropped 2.1% compared with a year earlier, though this marked an improvement on June's 3.4% decline. High street footfall fell 3.8% year-on-year in July, up from June's 6.2% plunge. Shopping centre footfall was also down, by 1.4% year-on-year, although this represented an improvement on June's 2.5% drop.
Regional Impact
England recorded the weakest performance of any UK nation with an overall footfall decline of 3%, with London down 5.3%, highlighting the ongoing challenges facing larger urban centres during spells of extreme heat, Sensormatic said.
Industry Response
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: "The heatwave continued to bear down on retail footfall in July, with high streets worst affected. London was hit particularly hard as soaring temperatures made tube and train travel less attractive, with some commuters and shoppers opting to stay home."
She added: "Nonetheless, it was still an improvement on the previous month's figures, when record-breaking sunshine saw footfall fall by an even bigger margin." Dickinson also noted: "Climate change continues to deliver more and more extreme temperatures in the UK. Retailers are responding by investing in both mitigations – such as more air conditioning and more efficient refrigeration units – and in sustainability initiatives aimed at reducing carbon emissions."
She concluded: "Unfortunately, business rates often punish stores for such investments, showing the need for government to look again at this broken system."
Expert Analysis
Andy Sumpter, from Sensormatic, revealed that six of the first seven months of this year fared worse than the corresponding period last year. He said: "The exceptionally hot and historically dry weather is likely to have been a significant factor, discouraging shopping trips and particularly impacting high streets."
He added: "While the UK has yet another new prime minister, retail is yet to experience any meaningful 'Burnham bounce'. For retailers, the focus remains on converting these more selective visits into meaningful spend as the summer progresses."
