Retail sales picked up during November as shoppers were tempted to return to stores by Black Friday promotions.
The latest BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor shows total retail sales increased by 5% in the four weeks to 27 November. This compares with a 0.9% uptick in the same period last year and is an improvement on the three-month average of 2.2%.
On a like-for-like basis, sales rose 1.8% year-on-year, above the three-month average of 0.2%.
In the three months to November, food sales increased 0.1% on a total basis and fell 0.5% on a like-for-like basis against tough comparatives with last year. Non-food retail sales were up 3.9% or 0.9% on an underlying basis.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, commented: “While Christmas may or may not be getting earlier every year, Black Friday certainly is. The American holiday has now become a month-long affair in the UK, with deals spread over a longer period than ever before.”
The data also showed that whilst in-store non-food sales increased 30.5%, online non-food sales slid 17.9% when compared with bumper growth during the lockdown last year. The non-food online penetration rate fell to 47.5% from 71.0% a year previously, although it remains 10.4 percentage points higher than in November 2019.
“While e-commerce was significantly down on last year, when lockdown pushed more consumers online, it still remains almost one-fifth up on pre-pandemic levels, accounting for almost half of all non-food spend,” said Dickinson.
Looking at the key Christmas trading period, she said: “Spending patterns suggest that sales could be more spread out than in previous years. Consumers, erring on the side of caution, are shopping for gifts earlier to get ahead of issues relating to shipping and transport.
“Meanwhile, retailers are doing everything they can to prepare stores, warehouses and deliveries ahead of Christmas, prioritising all the food and gifts that customers will need to enjoy the festive season.”
Paul Martin, UK Head of Retail at KPMG, added: “As we look ahead to the new year, rising costs continue to bite into margins and supply chain issues have impacted the availability of goods, leaving retailers with very little room for the mega discounting events we have seen in previous January sales.
“Rising inflation, which could top 4% + by the end of this year, is likely to prompt an interest rate rise sooner rather than later, which could dent consumer confidence and spending.”
