UK footfall edges up as consumers gear up for Black Friday

Footfall across all UK retail destinations crept up 0.4% last week, 12-18 November, compared to the week before, with the strongest performance recorded in high streets where footfall rose by 1%.

Shopping centres also witnessed a modest rise in footfall of 0.6%, however retail parks saw footfall decline 1.3% from the week before, according to the latest data from retail experts MRI Software.

Despite the boost in overall week-on-week footfall, annual footfall fell by 2.2% as shoppers faced challenging weather conditions and held out for this week's Black Friday sales.

There was further optimism for the high street, as the gap to 2019 footfall narrowed from -13.9% to -13.6% from the week previous, despite the gap across all UK retail destinations widening from -11.4% to -12.2%.

Jenni Matthews, Marketing and Insights Director at MRI Software, said: “It was a week of two halves, as weather warnings were issued in the first half of the week which will have likely discouraged consumers from venturing out, however footfall rose each day from Wednesday onwards with the week ending on a positive note for retail destinations as we head into Black Friday week.

“The marginal uplift in footfall last week failed to improve the year-on-year situation, with declines recorded in high streets and shopping centres, and only a marginal rise in retail parks. This also meant that the gap from the 2019 level worsened in shopping centres and retail parks however there was a slight improvement in high streets.

“Across the UK, footfall rose in seven out of eleven geographical regions, although Scotland witnessed a significant decline from the week before as heavy rain and strong winds were in full force at the start of the week. Coastal towns and Greater London also experienced declines in footfall from the week before.”