Shoppers set to spend £12bn during the weekend before Christmas
Retailers should be readying themselves for an expected £12bn shopping spree from UK consumers who have left their Christmas shopping until the last minute.
According to retail analysts from Verdict, thanks to Christmas Eve falling on a Monday, spending over next weekend (20-23 December) could be up 20 per cent up year-on-year.
“To put £12bn in context, shoppers spent £17bn in October: it’s a huge amount,” explained Andrew Stevens, a senior retail analyst at Verdict. “People have been putting things off to see if they can get a bigger deal, but also you have the fact that the 23rd falls on a Monday. People know they can wait to the end of this week and still have three days to shop.”
Around £6bn is expected to be spent on food, while £2.4bn of non-food purchases will be spent online.
Looking at the figures from individual shopping centres, the One complex in Liverpool has already recorded its busiest day since it opened in 2008. Last Saturday, 7 December, sales were up nine per cent year-on-year.
Meanwhile on Oxford Street, the number of shoppers was expected to rise by 6.2 per cent this weekend compared to last year.