Footfall up in February driven by weekend shoppers

Footfall in the UK rose by 9.4 percent in February from January, which saw a drop of 18.8 percent, according to the latest data from MRI Springboard.

The increase was driven by “the great return of the weekend shopper,” explains MRI Springboard, as hybrid working becomes a permanent way of working for many employees.

The footfall recovery to pre-pandemic levels has been stronger at weekends, with the gap in February to 2019 standing at -9.3 percent at weekends compared to -15.4 percent during the weekday period.

Retail is becoming “increasingly dependent on weekend shoppers,” with MRI Springboard finding that 56 percent of employees plan to work at home for at least part of the week, up from 53 percent in November 2022.

Footfall was also 16.1 percent higher in high streets than in February 2022, 9.7 percent higher in shopping centres and 1.4 percent higher in retail parks. MRI Springboard added that footfall increased annually in February 2023 from February 2022 by 11 percent versus an annual increase in January 2023 of 10.7 percent.

However, compared with pre-pandemic levels, footfall was still 12.5 percent below 2019 levels in February, worsening from a 12.3 percent drop in January. February footfall dropped to -15.1 percent in high streets, -16.1 percent in shopping centres and -3.3 percent in retail parks, compared to 2019.

Diane Wehrle, insights director at MRI Springboard, said in a statement: "Inevitably this is starting to reveal an emerging structural shift in consumer behaviour that is demonstrating that the weekend is becoming even more important in terms of generating footfall.

“With this ‘great return to the Saturday shopping day out’ we are seeing an increased demand from consumers wanting experience shopping vs necessity shopping, which means that retail destinations need to invest in their experience offer in order to keep consumers engaged. This is demonstrated by changes in shopping habits amongst those consumers who work in a hybrid way; nearly a quarter visit destinations less frequently than before Covid, those who spend longer on each trip has increased by a third since November 2022 and a quarter either combine shopping with leisure activities more and/or visit during the evening and at the weekend.”

Wehrle added: “All of the evidence is therefore pointing towards a significant shift in the usage of retail destinations moving forward. This will ultimately act as a catalyst for business owners and managers to adapt their operations to focus even more on the weekend period if they are to prosper in the post Covid economic environment.”