Bumper Easter week to boost footfall by +6.6%

Footfall is forecast to rise by +6.6% across all UK retail destinations over the week of Easter, according to MRI Software. MRI said it anticipates that shoppers will “flock” to retail parks this week to stock up on Easter essentials ahead of the weekend with the latter part of the week expected to see substantial rises. It predicts Good Friday especially is set to be a major boost for retailers. Retail parks are forecast to witness a rise in footfall of +14.2% and +11.3% in high streets when compared with activity in the week before. When compared with 2023 levels, footfall is expected to remain steady, rising only marginally in all UK retail destinations, primarily led by high streets. With it also being the first week of the Easter school holidays for many parts of the UK, coastal towns are expected to see a surge in footfall from the week before by almost a quarter. This upward trajectory is also likely to be replicated in historic and market towns as families choose to have days out and could strengthen as the Easter weekend nears. In addition, it said the surge in footfall is likely to subside over the Easter weekend, which is no surprise given the rise in footfall witnessed last week across all UK retail destinations. Nevertheless, Easter coinciding with payday and the school holidays, could provide a benevolent boost in footfall over the second peak trading period in the retail calendar. Last week, all UK retail destinations witnessed a week on week rise in footfall with consistent rises each day except for Saturday where activity declined marginally. Footfall bounced back across all regions and town types with Central London, Northern Ireland and Scotland seeing the greatest week on week uplift. Footfall rose by +4.8% last week from the week before, driven by a rise in high streets (+5.9%) followed by retail parks (+4.4%) and shopping centres (+3.1%). This was derived from consistent rises recorded each day with peaks on Sunday (+18.6%) and Tuesday (+10.2%). Footfall rose in high streets and retail parks by +2.8% and +1.7%, respectively, from 2023 levels however shopping centres witnessed a decline of -1.7%. All regions and town types saw a rebound in footfall with Central London leading the charge week on week (+7.8%) and year on year (+6.1%). This was largely driven by MRI Software’s Central London ‘Back to Office’ benchmark which recorded highs of +8.9% week on week and +8% year on year signalling a welcome boost ahead of the Easter break. Northern Ireland (+7.2%) and Scotland (+5.5%) also stood out with significant week on week rises however the West Midlands witnessed the greatest year on year rise with footfall levels sitting +8% higher than 2023 levels. Jenni Matthews, Marketing and Insights director at MRI Software, said: “Last week, the penultimate trading week before Easter, saw footfall rebound in all UK retail destinations following a decline in the week prior. March has witnessed a volatile trend with footfall fluctuating week on week, likely to be influenced by shifts in key holiday dates including Mother’s Day and the upcoming Easter break, therefore it’s unsurprising to see a bounce back in activity last week. “Annually, footfall rose in high streets and retail parks however shopping centres witnessed a decline for the third week this month. This has deteriorated from the same week last year suggesting that footfall levels are beginning to stabilise with the exception of key dates in the calendar acting as drivers of footfall.”