High street news and archive

London’s Oxford Street sees strong December footfall, but rest of UK struggles

London’s Oxford Street saw a 20 percent month-on-month increase in footfall in December, according to a new report which painted a bleaker picture for the rest of the UK. Oxford Street was the only major high street in the UK to experience an increase in footfall in December, according to accountancy firm RSM, which analysed data from data firm...

31 Jan 2023

Retail

Community space takes over former Debenhams store in London

An abandoned Debenhams building in London has finally been transformed into a multipurpose creative space nearly two years after the fashion retailer closed its doors. Set in the top floor of Hounslow’s Treaty Centre, ‘The Loft’ will act as an incubator, allowing businesses to gain their first high street retail experience in what will aim to be...

30 Jan 2023

Retail

Retail vacancies saw marginal decrease towards end of 2022

New figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) found that the UK’s retail vacancy rate saw a slight improvement compared to that of the previous year. In the fourth quarter of 2022, vacancies improved to 13.8 percent, 0.1 percentage points up from Q3 and 0.6 up compared to the same period in 2021. All locations were reported to have seen...

27 Jan 2023

RetailFeatured

Springboard publishes annual UK retail review 2022

Retail experts Springboard’s annual retail review for 2022 shows a slow but steady recovery for the UK’s retail landscape. While footfall in 2022 remained 14.2 percent under 2019 levels, January 2023 has already shown some days to have reached the same trading peaks as during pre-pandemic times. Springboard said the recovery in footfall in UK...

25 Jan 2023

Retail

Black Friday and Christmas sales gave no uplift to retailers

UK retail sales volumes fell by 0.4 percent in November following a rise of 0.9 percent in October when there was a bounce back from the impact of the additional Bank Holiday in September for the State Funeral. Neither Black Friday or the run-up to the Christmas shopping season significantly lifted sales. Figures from the ONS said online...

17 Dec 2022

Retail

Liverpool boasts most popular high street despite continued decline in sector

Research by Small Business Prices has found Liverpool to be the number one UK city for high street shopping, in a report that details where there is the biggest appreciation for the specific retail sector. The organisation analysed the 30 most populous cities in the UK, taking into consideration factors like the level of high street spending,...

7 Nov 2022

Retail

October saw shoppers return to the high street

Springboard’s October footfall insights show shoppers returned to the high street in a month that was buoyed by school half term holidays. Compared to 2019, footfall levels were down 9.8 percent, versus 12.6 percent in September and 7.8 percent higher than in 2021. It is also the first time that the gap from 2019 has been less than -10 percent...

2 Nov 2022

Retail

Footfall drops in October as cost-of-living squeezes households

Footfall across UK retail destinations declined by 2.3 percent in the week to October 22, as “consumer nervousness” continues due to the cost-of-living crisis and recent political uncertainty. According to Springboard, footfall dropped in all key shopping destinations, with the high street taking the biggest hit with a 3.3 percent decline in...

25 Oct 2022

RetailFeatured

UK retail sales in September fell below 2020 levels

UK retail sales slid 1.4 percent in September, 1.3 percent below pre-covid levels in February 2020, according the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). While retailers continue to mention the effect of rising prices and the cost of living on sales volumes, data for September 2022 are also affected by the bank holiday for the...

21 Oct 2022

Retail

Weekly footfall sees decline as rising energy costs take hold

Footfall across the UK saw a marginal decline last week, as compared to the week before, as concerns surrounding rising energy prices begin to take hold into October. According to a report by Springboard, for week 40, spanning Oct 2 to 8, the decline was driven by drops in footfall at both shopping centres and retail parks. However, the software...

11 Oct 2022

Retail

The UK’s strongest and weakest high streets revealed

Forget Oxford Street, or Regent Street or Notting Hill. New research reveals Liverpool is the UK city with the biggest love for the high street. Data from Small Business Prices shows Liverpool ranked highest for high street spending, with Coventry coming in last. London didn't fare much better. High street footfall is highest in Plymouth per...

29 Sept 2022

RetailFeatured

Cost-of-living to cause Christmas footfall to drop

The ongoing cost-of-living crisis is going to cause a “challenging run-up to Christmas” for retailers, with month-to-month footfall forecasted to decline in September, October and November, according to Springboard’s Christmas retail forecast. Retail intelligence experts Springboard forecast that all UK households will “feel the pinch" due to...

26 Sept 2022