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By FashionUnited

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With the UK Bank Holiday to start this weekend, the shops are looking forward to some consistent trading. But will they get it? With the four-day Easter break as an indication of sales, trading shouldn't go as bad as forewarned. Reading the doom and gloom of the newspapers: plummeting stocks and shares, falling house prices, a consumer slowdown just around the corner, the retail industry seems to be faring rather well. With March credit card borrowing rising by GBP 400m, the highest increase since May 2000, retailers must be benefiting somewhere along the line from consumer spending.

Whilst reports of a more-rocky-than-buoyant high street make their way in to the media, independents across the UK are keen to inform they are doing good business and sales are steady. Some even have said they have had their best season to date. The key to this season for many retailers is to concentrate on the brands that work. Less keen to spend money on new labels and sourcing for new collections, a large number of retailers have downsized to the labels that actually sell, and hanger-appeal is less important if, at the end of the season, they are still hanging.

Attracting consumers in the first place is probably the most difficult task. With stores such as Selfridges changing the standards of promotions it is evident that the promoting of brands, marketing and triggering consumer interest is high on the branding spending list. It may be too early to be wildly optimistic about business, but most retailers have said they are doing as well, if not better, than last year.

Holidy shopping