Footfall down on our High Streets again

With ever changing shopping habits… footfall is down on our High Streets again.

Northern Ireland saw the steepest decline at 5.8% - according to the British Retail Consortium.

However Retail NI says that doesn’t mean sales are down.

A "drab" December has capped a disappointing year for retailers and the second in a row of falling shopper numbers, figures show.

Even the Golden Quarter, typically the peak of shopping activity ahead of Christmas, provided little relief, with shopper visits down 2.5% over the period on 2023, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-Sensormatic Footfall Monitor.

Total UK footfall over the year was down 2.2% on the year before.

Northern Ireland experienced the biggest decline at 5.8%, followed by Wales, down 2.6%, England (2.1%) and Scotland (1.5%).

High streets and shopping centres were hit particularly hard throughout the year as people veered towards retail parks to take advantage of free parking and the variety of larger stores, the BRC said.

BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: "A drab December which saw fewer shoppers in all locations capped a disappointing year for UK retail footfall.

"Shopping habits have been changing fast and customers are increasingly looking for more experiential shopping, as well as a variety of cafes, services and things to do.

"Unfortunately, investment in town centres and high streets is held back by our outdated business rates system, which penalises town and city centres.#

Chief Executive of Retail NI, Glyn Roberts, spoke to CoolFM/Downtown exclusively, highlighting that just because footfall is down... does not mean sales are also down.

"It will be interesting to see if that translates to sales being down. We'll wait to hear particularly how the banks report on how much of that spend was online as well."

He says it's vital retailers had a good Christmas, to see them through the year: " It is critical for our sector because it's the harvest time. It is the time increased amounts of money are made to sustain businesses throughout the year."

Mr Roberts said 2025 will continue to be difficult for retailers here - due to changes to employers tax come April.