Black Friday delivers muted results as online fashion stumbles

The final week of November, typically a retail bonanza due to Black Friday promotions, delivered a surprisingly lukewarm performance this year. According to the latest BDO High Street Sales Tracker, total like-for-like (LFL) sales inched up by just +0.38%. While this growth is positive, it pales in comparison to the solid +18.96% surge recorded during the same week last year, suggesting that deep discounting is no longer a guaranteed driver of consumer spending.

Fashion takes a hit online

The most significant drag on performance came from the apparel sector. For the first time since the beginning of October, non-store fashion sales turned negative. This contraction in online clothing spend heavily impacted the overall outcome for total fashion sales, casting a shadow over what is usually a peak trading period for the industry.

While total non-store LFL sales across all categories managed a growth of +2.53%, the specific decline in digital fashion indicates a shift in consumer priority or perhaps "discount fatigue" among clothing shoppers.

High street resilience amidst falling footfall

Brick-and-mortar stores showed modest resilience, with total store LFL sales rising by +2.13%. However, this occurred against a backdrop of declining physical presence; overall footfall dropped by -2.5%, with shopping centres seeing the steepest decline at -3.6%.

Weathering the storm

The weather offered little assistance to retailers hoping for a seasonal boost. Conditions were unsettled, grey, and damp with intermittent frost. Interestingly, conditions were arguably better than the same week last year, which was battered by Storms Bert and Conall. Despite the absence of severe storms this year, the lack of extreme weather was not enough to drive shoppers back to the high street in significant numbers.

As retailers look toward the final stretch of the Golden Quarter, the dip in online fashion demand serves as a cautionary tale: promotional events alone may not be enough to secure the season’s success.