Data from Sensormatic Solutions, the leading global retail solutions portfolio of Johnson Controls, has revealed that total UK retail footfall on Super Saturday jumped by +35.4% year-on-year, as last-minute Christmas shoppers swarmed into store on the penultimate day – and the last full shopping day – before Christmas.
Data from the Sensormatic IQ platform, which captures 40billion shopper visits globally each year, showed that shopper traffic for total retail on ‘Frenzied Friday’ (22 Dec 2023) saw total retail shopper visits rising +43% week-on-week. With UK shoppers expected to spend £4.89billion on the four days between 21 – 24 Dec, Super Saturday also up experienced a +0.1% week-on-week uplift compared to the Saturday prior (16 Dec 2023).
“With Christmas falling on a Monday and stores closing earlier for Sunday trading, Super Saturday was the last full day of shopping before Christmas,” Andy Sumpter, Sensormatic Solutions’ EMEA Retail Consultant, commented. “Retailers experienced a significant year-on-year jump in footfall this year, as last year Super Saturday fell Christmas Eve, when stores ran restricted festive trading hours.”
“We always expect Super Saturday to be a busy in-store shopping day. However, because of ongoing spending caution and the high levels of price-sensitivity shoppers are exhibiting, the last minute rush into store has been even more marked this year. Consumers have shopped around to get the best deals on gifts, with many holding out until the last moment to make purchases, while others held off, in a Christmas game of cat and mouse, in the hope that retailers would release early Boxing Day discounts to drive up demand,” he continued.
Compared to High Streets and Shopping Centres, Retail Parks saw the biggest uptick in visitor numbers on Super Saturday, up +9.3% week-on-week. Retail Parks are expected to become one of the most successful performing retail settings for 2024, according to the Retail Think Tank (RTT). In its 2024 Property Outlook, the RTT expects Retail Parks to become the standout retail setting in terms of growth, predicted to improve relative to the High Street and Shopping Centres. Having already become a resilient retail setting during covid, buoyed by their tenant mix that included ‘essential retail’ supermarkets anchors, this rise and rise of retail parks shows no signs of stopping.
“More comparison goods retailers want to trade on retail parks,” RTT member and retail consultant, Jonathan De Mello, commented. “For Next and M&S, their retail park stores are among their best performing. With a broadening of the offer away from just bulky goods, and more food and beverage operators seeking to trade on retail parks, they are increasingly providing a real alternative to High Streets.”
