Intu encouraged by 'strong' return of footfall at shopping centres

Intu has said footfall across 13 of its shopping centres has been “steadily improving week-on-week” since stores were allowed to open on 15 June.

The firm, which operates Manchester’s Trafford Centre and Lakeside in Essex, fell into administration in June following failed crunch talks with its lenders, though its shopping centres have continued to trade.

The company said Friday that since face coverings in retails stores were made mandatory in England on 24 July, footfall at its branded centres rose sharply by 7 percent compared to Springboard’s national benchmark of 4.4 percent.

Though footfall is not back to pre-Covid-19 levels, Intu said the progress shows that its best locations are “starting early steps to recovery”. Across those centres, 85 percent of brands have now reopened.

Scotland is seeing a particularly positive rebound, with footfall at Intu Braehead at 92 percent of last year’s levels. Footfall at Intu Watford is at 60 percent compared to last year.

“A shopping centre environment, by its nature of being a private space, can be more closely managed and the visitor experience adjusted carefully,” Jim Tucker, joint administrator of Intu and partner at KPMG, said in a statement. “Safety measures can be put in place to control the number of people in a location at any one time, managing the flow of people ensuring social distancing guidelines can be adhered to, and making sure that face coverings are worn throughout.

“This level of control over a shopping environment creates a place where visitors and brands can interact with some peace of mind, something that cannot always be achieved in an open, unmanaged space. And from the data, we can see that this peace of mind is encouraging more people back, more quickly.”

Photo credit: Intu Lakeside