The latest data from the British Retail Consortium’s Sensormatic IQ footfall monitor recorded an uptick in year-on-year footfall in December. The 15.1% increase on the previous year brought footfall to its highest level since the beginning of the pandemic. Footfall increased by 19.7% on high streets and 13.4% at shopping centres, but declined 1.6% at retail parks. BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson cautioned that 2023 would be another challenging year for retail, as footfall continues to track 10% below pre-pandemic levels.
UK outlet centres have announced strong sales figures as consumers shop for deals. Sales at Wembley Park’s London Designer Outlet hit £10.5million in December, a 2.6% increase on December 2019, and a 32% increase on 2021. Icon Outlet at The O2 reported a 16% rise in like-for-like sales in 2022, with average spend per customer also rising 16%. London Designer Outlet reported that its strongest trading day was Boxing Day, with an increase of 89% on Boxing Day 2021.
The restaurant group which operates Six by Nico have announced expansion plans for the UK and internationally, following strong turnover for the year to June 2022. In this period, Sixco opened new Six by Nico sites in London’s Canary Wharf, Dublin and Aberdeen. Alongside new bakery and bar concepts, the group are looking to open four Six by Nico sites in 2023.
Marks & Spencer have taken on another former Debenhams unit, this time a 135,000sq. ft. store at the Trafford Centre in Manchester. Following its occupation of the ex-Debenhams store at Lakeside shopping centre in Essex last year, it recently acquired two further Debenhams sites, at the Liverpool One centre and the White Rose centre in Leeds. The new stores are part of the brand’s estate overhaul in which it plans to close 67 “lower productivity full line stores” and open 100 new Simply Food sites.