(Alliance News) - UK retail destinations booked their largest footfall plunge in over six months in January, data on Friday showed, after England third national lockdown emptied high streets and shopping centres once again.
According to the British Retail Consortium-ShopperTrak monitor, UK retail footfall tumbled 77% annually in January, a steeper fall than the 46% contraction in December, a month when various regions, including London, were slapped with tier 4 restrictions.
The January fall was the largest decline since May's 82% plunge.
England's third national lockdown came into force on January 6 and since then footfall is 78% lower annually. This is a steeper drop than the 76% decline in the second lockdown in November, which was a month long, and the 82% plunge during the initial three-month lockdown last spring.
In January, high-street footfall fell 73%, the steepest decline since a 78% fall in May. It is also worse than the three-month average fall of 60%.
Shopping centre footfall declined by 78% annually, also the worst showing since May. Like high streets, the three-month average footfall decline in shopping centres was 60%.
Retail parks similarly registered their worst showing since May, but January footfall fell by 41% annually, a much more modest decline than high streets and shopping centres. The average three-month footfall decline in retail parks is 27%.
With regards to preventing the spread of Covid-19, retail parks benefit from being open-air, while shopping centres are enclosed.
"Footfall went from bad to worse in January, dropping by over three quarters. So far, retail locations in England are being hit harder than in the previous lockdown. Under tight restrictions for the whole month, shopping centres saw the biggest decline in footfall of all retail locations, overtaking high streets for the first time since July 2020," BRC Chief Executive Helen Dickinson said.
"The drop in footfall clearly shows the public heeding government advice to stay home where possible. Retailers have also been playing their part, stepping up safety measures wherever possible in order to keep staff and customers safe. Nonetheless, the future uncertainty for closed retailers puts many jobs and stores at risk. In the face of rising rents and return to full business rates liability from April, businesses are having to make business decisions about their future."
By Eric Cunha; ericcunha@alliancenews.com
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