Retail Footfall Ticked Up Modestly In Sept

UK BRC-SHOPPERTRAK SEP FOOTFALL -30.1% Y/Y (AUG -34.8%)

London and Manchester were the worst performing cities in Sep

• The BRC-Shoppertrak footfall monitor showed a 4.7pp increase in Sep with total footfall declining by 30.1% y/y.
• High streets saw the largest decline among the different areas with footfall falling by 36.9% on an annual basis, falling below shopping centres for the second time since Apr 2018.
• Shopping centres also saw footfall decrease markedly, down by 36.1% y/y, only improving by 1.0pp compared to Aug.
• Footfall in retail parks posted the smallest yearly decline by 6.9%, mainly due to wider open spaces and a higher proportion of supermarkets.
• The BRC emphasised that footfall may drop in the coming months as Covid-19 cases are likely to rise and further restrictions are likely to put in place.
• The report further noted that footfall rose towards the end of Aug due to back-to-school purchases and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme but declined steadily in Sep, falling by 9pp by the end of the month.
• London and Manchester - a city under local lockdown - saw footfall plunge to around -40% in Sep.