UK retail sales saw solid growth in January, despite the nationwide poor weather being expected to hamper footfall.
According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), across the whole of the country, total retail sales increased by 2.6% year-on-year in January, which is up compared to last year’s growth of 1.2% from this time last year.
According to the BRC, this growth was above both the three-month average growth and 12-month average growth figures, of 1.1% and 0.8%, respectively.
Encouragingly, non-food sales (including big ticket KBB items) saw an increase of 2.5% in January. This is particularly significant considering in January 2024, non-food sales were down by 2.8%. Food retail sales were also up this January by 2.3%.
Helen Dickinson OBE, chief executive of the BRC, welcomed the recovery, saying: “January sales kicked off a solid month for retail with stores delivering their strongest growth in almost two years, albeit on a weak comparable. Consumers headed to the shops to refresh their homes for the year ahead, taking advantage of big discounts on furniture, bedding and other home accessories.
“With growth across nearly all categories, only toys and baby equipment remained in decline. While the bouts of stormy weather put a temporary dampener on demand, sales growth held up well throughout the rest of the month. This was also helped by the earlier start of the reporting period, adding a few more post-Christmas shopping days into the mix.”
However, Dickinson cautioned retailers not to rest on their laurels, adding: “Whether this strong performance can hold out for the coming months is yet to be seen.
She continued: “Inflationary pressures are rising, compounded by £7bn of new costs facing retailers, including higher employer national insurance contributions, higher National Living Wage, and a new packaging levy. Many businesses will be left with little choice but to increase prices, and cut investment in jobs and stores. Government can mitigate this by ensuring its proposed business rates reforms do not result in any shop paying more in business rates.”
Last month, the BRC and other organisations called on the government to increase support for the retail sector in 2025, after footfall numbers dropped in December 2024.
