Footfall drops almost 30% post Christmas

Retailers in the UK saw footfall decrease 27.7% last week compared to the week before Christmas, which was just 7% higher than this week last year, according to data from Springboard.

This number was nearly 20% lower than the number in 2019, although Springboard did attribute some of this to data offset.

Footfall on Boxing Day was nearly 40% higher than in 2021 but was just over 18% lower than 2019.

Despite this, retailers saw a 37% spike in footfall on 27 December and it continued to rise each day up to 29 December before falling off from New Year’s Eve.

Over the six days from Boxing Day, footfall was 16.3% higher than on the same dates in 2021.

The gap from 2019 over the six days from Boxing Day averaged a decrease 11.9%. The gap narrowed by an uplift of 26.6% on 29th December. Excluding this day, the gap in footfall from 2019 averaged a decrease of 19.5%

Diane Wehrle, insights director at Springboard, said: “Not surprisingly, footfall across UK retail destinations during the week of Christmas was significantly lower than in the week before that in the final trading week. Footfall was higher than in the same week last year, but not significantly, despite Christmas 2021 being overshadowed by Covid.

“A key factor here is the offset of Christmas which meant that last week began on Christmas Day – when footfall is at its lowest – whilst in 2021 the week began on Boxing Day when many stores were open and trading. In 2019 – the last Christmas before Covid-19 – the offset is even greater, with Christmas Day falling part way through the week before and Week 52 commencing on 29 th December 2019.”

She added: “The week began strongly with footfall on Boxing Day 2022 higher than in 2021 although some of this gain would have been due to Boxing Day 2022 falling on a Monday vs a Sunday in 2021 when trading hours were more limited. In addition to this, a number of stores remained closed on Boxing Day in 2021 and the impact of Covid on people’s willingness to make trips was being felt.

“What is significant – and what has been an emerging trend for several years – is that footfall on 27 December 2022 was higher than on Boxing Day. Furthermore, footfall rose further on the following two days peaking on 29 December, with the first decline from the day before occurring on 30 December, which then continued into New Year’s Eve 2022.”