Shopping areas enjoy best week since lockdown thanks to Eat Out to Help Out scheme

BRITAIN'S high streets and other retail destinations have enjoyed their best week since lockdown started thanks to the Chancellor’s ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ scheme.

Footfall across all retail destinations throughout the UK rose by 6 per cent last week according to data firm Springboard.

Shopping centres saw an increase of 9.1 per cent in visitor numbers week on week, while high streets were up 4.8 per cent and retail parks up 5 per cent.

However, despite the weekly rises, footfall is still a quarter down on last year.

Diane Wehrle, Insights Director at Springboard commented: “The last full week of the ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ scheme led to the most positive footfall result of any week so far with increases in all three destination types from the week before, and year on year declines that were the most modest since the start of the lockdown.”

Springboard also noted that the just-finished bank holiday weekend showed a further improvement in footfall for all retail destinations, with numbers down just 11 per cent on last year.

It comes as shop prices fell further in August as non-food retailers try to tempt consumers in store.

The latest monthly BRC-Nielsen shop price index revealed that prices at retailers fell by 1.6 per cent for the month.

For non-food products only the fall was bigger, at 3.4 per cent in August.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), said vonsumers will welcome another month of falling prices in shops.

But she warned: “However, these lower prices are already under threat from increased costs associated with implementing coronavirus safety measures and are certain to rise if the UK ends the transition period without a trade deal with the EU.

“The absence of a tariff-free deal will lead to higher prices for consumers as thin retail margins force retailers to raise prices in response to higher import costs.”

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