MRI: Retail Footfall Rebounded Last Week

MRI Software has published its latest OnLocation Index, covering Sunday to Saturday, the week 17/03/2023 - 23/03/2024.

Overall

2024 vs 2023: +1.4%
Week-on-week: 4.8%

High Street

2024 vs 2023: +2.8%
Week-on-week: +5.9%

Shopping Centre

2024 vs 2023: -1.7%
Week-on-week: +3.1%

Retail Park

2024 vs 2023: +1.7%
Week-on-week: +4.4%

Jenni Matthews, Marketing & Insights Director, OnLocation for Footfall Analytics, MRI Software, said: 

Last week, the penultimate trading week before Easter, saw footfall rebound in all UK retail destinations following a decline in the week prior. March has witnessed a volatile trend with footfall fluctuating week on week, likely to be influenced by shifts in key holiday dates including Mother’s Day and the upcoming Easter break, therefore it’s unsurprising to see a bounce back in activity last week.  

All UK retail destinations witnessed a week on week rise in footfall with consistent rises each day except for Saturday where activity declined marginally. It was also encouraging to see footfall bounce back in all regions and town types with Central London, Northern Ireland and Scotland seeing the greatest week on week uplift.

Annually, footfall rose in high streets and retail parks however shopping centres witnessed a decline for the third week this month. This has deteriorated from the same week last year suggesting that footfall levels are beginning to stabilise with the exception of key dates in the calendar acting as drivers of footfall. 

Footfall rose by +4.8% last week from the week before driven by a rise in high streets (+5.9%) followed by retail parks (+4.4%) and shopping centres (+3.1%). This was derived from consistent rises recorded each day with peaks on Sunday (+18.6%) and Tuesday (+10.2%) which is likely to be in response to the significant declines recorded on the same days in the week prior. However, the rises decreased in magnitude as the weekend approached with Saturday seeing activity levels decline by -1.9% in all retail destinations.

All regions and town types saw a rebound in footfall with Central London leading the charge week on week (+7.8%) and year on year (+6.1%). This was largely driven by MRI Software’s Central London ‘Back to Office’ benchmark which recorded highs of +8.9% week on week and +8% year on year signalling a welcome boost ahead of the Easter break. Northern Ireland (+7.2%) and Scotland (+5.5%) also stood out with significant week on week rises however the West Midlands witnessed the greatest year on year rise with footfall levels sitting +8% higher than 2023 levels.

Footfall rose in high streets and retail parks by +2.8% and +1.7%, respectively, from 2023 levels however shopping centres witnessed a decline of -1.7%.

As we enter the week of Easter, we anticipate footfall to rise by +6.6% across all UK retail destinations with retail parks and high streets expected to lead the charge. With it also being the first week of the Easter school holidays for many parts of the UK, coastal towns are expected to see a surge in footfall from the week before by almost a quarter. This upward trajectory is also likely to be replicated in historic and market towns as families choose to have days out and could strengthen as the Easter weekend nears.

It’s anticipated that shoppers will flock to retail parks this week to stock up on Easter essentials ahead of the weekend with the latter part of the week expected to see substantial rises. Good Friday especially, could see retail parks witness a rise in footfall of +14.2% and +11.3% in high streets when compared with activity in the week before. When compared with 2023 levels, footfall is expected to remain steady, rising only marginally in all UK retail destinations, primarily led by high streets. 

This surge is likely to subside as we head into the weekend which is no surprise given the rise in footfall witnessed last week across all UK retail destinations. Nevertheless, with Easter coinciding with payday as well as the school holidays, this could provide a benevolent boost in footfall over the second peak trading period in the retail calendar.

Source : MRI Software

Image : IR Stone / shutterstock.com / 237523528

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