Shoppers have been let loose on Britain’s high streets their last-minute mad dash rush for turkeys and Christmas presents.
Brits made up in wooly jumpers and scarves – and sometimes Santa hats – are on the lookout for the best deals ahead of the big day on Wednesday.
Retail experts have said they expect today and tomorrow to see a ‘surge in shopper activity’ as people come out ‘in full force’ to make their final preparations ahead of Christmas.
Photos taken of recent activity show men and women forming huge queues outside their local butchers to collect their turkeys and meat for their festive dinners.
There are also packed streets across the country, while hordes of shoppers were seen arriving at London‘s train stations this morning.
Accoding to footfall data from retail tech experts MRI Software the number of people out shopping is up by more than a fifth compared to this time last week.
It comes after millions took to high streets, retail parks and malls over the weekend to finalise their Christmas shopping.
Many businesses will be hoping to make the most of the Christmas and New Year surge to save their ‘golden quarter’ – the part of the year where retailers typically make most of their annual profits – after a disappointing autumn
Christmas shoppers in Canterbury, Kent, ahead of Christmas Day on Wednesday. Brits made up in wooly jumpers and scarves – and sometimes Santa hats – are on the lookout for the best deals
A mass queue gathers outside a Timperley butchers as people waited for over an hour and an half for their Xmas Turkeys
Christmas shoppers pack Regents Street, London just after 10.30am with only two shopping days left before Christmas
A representative for MRI Software said: ‘As the final two trading days before Christmas get underway, retailers should be prepared for a surge in shopper activity.
‘With a mild Christmas forecasted in terms of the weather, many consumers may well be out in full force, not only for Boxing Day sales but also to enjoy the final days of the festive markets, leisure activities, and trips to theatre.
‘This will be key in closing out the year on a positive note for retail stores and destinations.’
It comes as there are also reports of a swell in visitors to London’s popular Westfield shopping centres in Stratford and White City.
Katie Wyle, the head of shopping centre management UK at Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, owner of the centres said: ‘Super Weekend is always one of the busiest calendar moments for retail, and at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City last year we welcomed 550,000 visitors looking to maximise the final shopping weekend before Christmas.’
For those who have left everything to the last minute, David Jinks, head of consumer research at parcel delivery aggregator ParcelHero has said the ‘good news’ is that a few online retailers are taking orders as late as 24 December in time for Christmas.
He added: ‘Amazon, Argos and a number of other stores are taking same-day orders on Christmas Eve… for a price.’
The surge in shoppers has added to a general business in all corners of the UK – with some transport hubs, like King’s Cross Station, proving particularly packed.
A spokesman for the British Retail Consortium said they were hopeful the shopping would deliver a much-needed boost to the retail industry.
They added: ‘Retailers are hoping after a challenging year of trading Christmas will deliver the boost they need.
Shoppers queue outside the famous Griffins the butchers in the West Berkshire Town of Newbury to collect their Christmas orders ahead of Christmas Eve
Shoppers in Canterbury, Kent, ahead of Christmas Day on Wednesday
Passengers arrive at King’s Cross Station in central London as the Christmas getaway continues
‘One-fifth of the year’s sales are made in the ‘golden quarter’ so it is a very important trading period.’
This comes amid worrying suggestions that November was a weaker month than might be expected.
Kris Hamer, Director of Insight at the British Retail Consortium, said: ‘After a positive start to the Golden Quarter, November sales stagnated, with higher energy bills and low consumer sentiment impacting spending. Clothing suffered from a fall in sales, with milder weather putting many off updating their winter wardrobe.
‘Consumers were also holding out for the main black Friday sales week to pick up beauty and electrical deals, which saw their first falls of the year.
‘The final two months of the year account for over one-fifth of all sales, making it a period of vital importance – particularly for non-food.
‘With a weak November performance, retailers will hope that shoppers come out in force in the final days before Christmas.’
Timperley butchers mass queue for turkeys. Photos taken of recent activity show men and women forming huge queues outside their local butchers as they are yet to sort their Christmas dinner
Mass queue for turkeys – Timperley butchers. Carnage has unfolded on Britain’s streets as shoppers are let loose in their last-minute mad dash rush for turkeys and Christmas presents
Yet despite this, there could be hope after all as there is evidence of a ‘strong start to the week’ for retail with footfall reportedly rising by just over a fifth up until 1pm today when compared against last week.
Figures show that for all UK destinations there was a 21.9 per cent week on week change for footfall – with figures compared to last week.
Jenni Matthews, Marking and Insights Director, at retail tech experts MRI Software, said: ‘This was mostly led by strong performance in shopping centres (+34.5 per cent) and retail parks (+29.7 per cent) as shoppers look to stock up on groceries and grab those last-minute gifts.
‘High streets also saw strong week on week growth (+12.2 per cent) however this was almost a third of what was seen in retail parks and shopping centres.
‘Comparing against the same date last year, for an accurate reflection of trends, footfall remained -4.1 per cent lower across all UK retail destinations with declines recorded in high streets (-6.7 per cent) and shopping centres (-3.3 per cent).
‘Retail parks witnessed a marginal uplift of +0.6 per cent. This may suggest that shoppers are likely to head out later in the day or even this evening especially with many retail stores and destinations operating late into the night.’
