Malls and retail parks were Black Friday winners - Ipsos

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Dec 1, 2021

Ease and buying in comfort played into the hands of shopping centres and retail parks when it came to Black Friday’s week-long shopping event.

Parks and centres made the most of the cold weather, proving to be the preferred choice for many Black Friday UK consumers with week-on-week footfall increasing 37.6% and 38.8%, respectively, latest figures from Ipsos show.

The report said "high streets in particular continued to struggle to bounce back post-pandemic", without giving numbers.

Meanwhile, across the extended Black Friday week, UK-wide footfall still remained 27.6% below 2019’s level.

Retailers in London and the South East saw footfall increase 38.3% and by 34.1% week-on-week respectively, but numbers were still down 30.3% and 24.8% respectively on pre-pandemic 2019 levels. Retailers in Wales and the South West struggled the most to attract shoppers, with footfall increasing by less than 25% over the same period.

Data also showed that footfall was spread out over the course of the week, with shopper numbers performing better early in the week compared to the same period in 2019.

Oliver Hillier, senior retail analyst at Ipsos, said: “It’s interesting that consumers chose to visit shopping centres and retail parks over the high street this Black Friday. Pre-Covid, we would often see consumers queuing down the high street from the early hours to take advantage of the latest discounts. 

“The success of shopping centres and retail parks suggests that this year many shoppers prioritised convenience. Generally shopping centres have struggled compared to retail parks post-pandemic, but it appears that the cold snap encouraged more shoppers to seek out the sales indoors.”

Hillier added: “Black Friday sales are now being introduced earlier in the month and shoppers appear to be taking advantage of the offers earlier. It’s no longer just about the Friday offers, and purchases will be spread out over the whole week.”