Footfall figures still behind last year, but retailers hold their nerve and shopper numbers continue to grow, says Synovate
15 December 2009
UNITED KINGDOM — This the second of the weekly 'countdown to Christmas' releases from Synovate Retail Performance has shown that shoppers were simply not going to be stampeded into shopping by tales of stock shortages this Christmas, at least in the early part of the week. While the Retail Traffic Index (RTI) for the week just ended (Sunday 6th - Saturday 12th December 2009) shows the number of people out shopping in non-food stores was 5.7% higher than the previous week, somewhat unexpectedly it also shows that numbers were down by a full 3.0% on the corresponding week of 2008. Week-on-week growth was strongest in London & the South East, where traffic levels rose by 7.9%. Year-on-year performance was strongest in the Midlands, which saw a rise of 0.5% on 2008.
Synovate's Dr Tim Denison explains, "Whilst the year on year figures are subdued, the increase in traffic over these first two weeks of Christmas shopping is greater than the comparable surge last year, confirming that shopping momentum is building. We had forecast the deficit in retail traffic against last year to be about 1.4% last week instead of the 3% measured, but it may be that things are now on the turn."
During the middle of last week, year-on-year numbers began turning positive, but the slow start to the week outweighed the strong finish on Friday and Saturday. The end-of-week performance with traffic levels on Saturday up 4.2% on last year hints that shoppers may finally now have woken up to the fact that the later they leave their shopping this year, the higher the risk of some disappointments in key items.
Denison continues; "We expect to see the strong figures continue into this week and next. Most retailers will be very satisfied with the way the campaign is going so far; mainly because underlying footfall is healthy despite there being far fewer Sales than last year, and realistic price points are delivering sales without the need to draw too heavily on deep-cut promotions. Two weeks in, and things are generally under control!"
Synovate will be issuing footfall updates regularly up to and shortly after Christmas and the New Year.
Enquiries for interviews with Dr. Tim Denison should be directed to Theo Chalmers at Verve PR on 01908 275271 (weekdays) or 07932 004632.
Contact(s) for this press release
|
Chris Scoot
Synovate Retail Performance |
|
|
34 Walker Avenue |
Telephone: +44 1908 682 700 |
|
Theo Chalmers
Managing Director, Verve Public Relations |
|
|
Park House, 8 Grove Ash |
Tel. +44 1908 275 271 |
Synovate Retail Performance provides footfall monitoring solutions, shopper tracking systems and in-store behavioural research to retailers worldwide. Its core products - Shopper Count, Shopper Interact and Shopper Engage - scientifically measure all aspects of a shopper experience from store entry to exit. It supplies national and international retailers with essential business metrics to drive accountability and performance improvement.
Synovate Retail Performance is home to the Retail Traffic Index series, which for over 10 years has been the industry's leading tracker of national, regional and sector retail footfall trends. It is also co-founder of the KPMG / Synovate Retail Think Tank, offering thought leadership on the state of retail health and the future of retailing.
General information for Synovate Retail Performance, email info.rp@synovate.com
Synovate Retail Performance Limited is registered in England and Wales under number 3552625 with its registered address at Minerva House, 5 Montague Close, London, SE1 9AY, UK. Synovate Retail Performance is a wholly owned subsidiary of Synovate.
About Synovate
Synovate generates insights to help clients drive competitive brand, product and customer experience strategies. Now part of Ipsos, with offices in over 80 countries, our approach combines best in class global research capabilities with personalised service, local knowledge and the flexibility to create teams and processes that meet clients' specific requirements. At Synovate, our clients sit at the top of our organisational chart, driving us to continually develop more innovative research solutions that predict actual business outcomes.
For more information on Synovate visit www.synovate.com.