Summer trading boom for Wembley Park as stadium gigs trigger sales surges

A summer of global live performances has given businesses in Wembley Park a major boost, with Ed Sheeran superfans beating fans of Harry Styles, Coldplay, Westlife and Foo Fighters in driving sales and footfall during performances at Wembley Stadium.

A whopping ten brands, made up of both retail and food & beverage, experienced their best-ever trading days this summer across Wembley Park. Seven of these were due to Ed Sheeran's show dates.

Ed Sheeran fans spent an eye-watering £667,005 throughout the neighbourhood and London Designer Outlet (LDO) during the Shape of You Star’s gig on 25 June, 16% more than the £574,166 Harry Styles fans spent during his gig on performance on 18 June.

Footfall was also 25% higher during Sheeran's performance compared to Styles's.

In third place were Westlife fans, who spent £543,472 across the 15-minute neighbourhood and LDO on 6 August. The 90s boyband were followed by Coldplay fans, who collectively spent £516,642 during the gig on 13 August.

Foo Fighter fanatics took the wooden spoon last Saturday, spending a combined £449,306 during the epic Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert, 14.9% less the Coldplay’s. Foo Fighter footfall was 14.4% higher by comparison, however.

Sheeran’s sway over shoppers even beat that of P!nk, whose fans held the previous record after her Wembley Stadium performance in June 2019 sparked a £586,922 trading surge. The Spice Girls also played that same month, with fans spending £552,422 throughout Wembley Park and LDO.

Matt Slade, Retail Director at Quintain, said the return of large, live events at Wembley Stadium and OVO Arena Wembley had resulted in an exceptionally strong summer for trading.

Matt added: “Despite consumers tightening the purse strings, we’ve had a blazing-hot summer of trading across Wembley Park and LDO – ensuring the success of the many shops, restaurants, cafés and bars throughout the neighbourhood during what is an undeniably tough time for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors.

“While the impact of large-scale events at Wembley Stadium is undeniable, trading and footfall throughout summer has remained consistently high. Now, with more than 6,000 people living on-site, businesses across the neighbourhood are reaping the rewards of being part of what is fast-becoming Britain’s best example of the 15-minute city model.”

Set in Wembley Park, the globally famous entertainment district and neighbourhood, London Designer Outlet is one of only a small number of outlet centres in Europe that blend retail, F&B, leisure and events in an urban setting.

Retail and leisure destinations like London Designer Outlet have consistently outperformed wider physical retail throughout the pandemic, attracting guests with their open-air design and a mix of designer and high street fashion retailers.