Black Friday deals started early as competition between retailers ‘hits fever pitch’

Non-food inflation decreased to -0.6% year-on-year in November, against a decline of 0.4% in October, as retailers went early on Black Friday offers to entice hesitant shoppers.

That’s according to the latest BRC-NIQ Shop Price Monitor data covering 1-7 November, which saw overall shop price inflation decrease to 0.6% in November - against a growth of 1% in October.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the BRC, said: "Black Friday deals began earlier than normal as competition between retailers hit fever pitch. Savvy shoppers picked up some great deals across health and beauty, electricals and fashion.

"With Budget uncertainty behind us, retailers are hoping that consumer confidence rebounds in this crucial trading period and they will continue doing everything they can to keep prices down and help customers’ money go further this Christmas.

"Headwinds in the new year include rising employment costs, which are likely to filter through to prices. This could shake already weak consumer confidence and present further challenges for consumers in the year ahead."

Mike Watkins, Head of Retailer and Business Insight at NIQ, added: "It’s good news for shoppers that price increases are slowing but inflationary pressures still remain, in particular within food.

"The UK retail market is very competitive so retailers will need to keep any price increases as low as possible in the run up to Christmas, in order to entice shoppers to spend."

Yesterday it was reported that UK retail footfall on Black Friday itself (28 November) fell compared to last year, despite an expected uplift in the week leading into the event, according to new data from Sensormatic.

The company reported that in-store visits on Black Friday declined by 3% year-on-year, reflecting continued consumer caution and pressure on household budgets.

It also linked the softer demand partly to uncertainty following the UK Autumn Budget, announced just two days before Black Friday.

Although Black Friday itself underperformed, shopper traffic in the preceding week showed modest signs of improvement.

Between 22-28 November 2025, total UK retail visits rose 1.1% year-on-year. High street locations performed more strongly, with store counts up 2.8% compared with the same week in 2024.

Footfall also strengthened on a week-on-week basis, climbing 54.9% compared with the previous week and rising 78.5% versus the average of the two prior Fridays.

Retail parks recorded a 0.2% year-on-year increase on Black Friday itself, while shopping centres delivered the strongest week-on-week growth, with visits rising 63.8%.