Homeware sales returned to positive territory on the high street, while footfall recorded the highest increase since the second week of July 2022.
According to the latest BDO High Street Sales Tracker, total like-for-like (LFL) sales rose by 26.40% for the week ending 25 December 2022.
Homeware total LFLs increased by +7.45% from a good base of +11.93% for the same week last year, marking the category’s eighteenth positive result for this year.
Instore homeware sales climbed by +43.82% from a solid base of +79.23% for the same week last year, denoting its thirty fifth positive result this year.
Total in-store LFL sales soared by +41.84%, but from a high base of +98.30% for the same week last year. Total non-store LFL sales grew by +2.60% from a solid base of +16.59% for the same week last year.
Commenting on the results, BDO said: “Total like-for-like (LFL) sales sprang-up by +26.40% this week from a strong base of +60.87% for the same week last year, a week which also included Christmas. Thanks to last minute Christmas shopping, total LFLs saw the largest growth since April.
“In-store LFLs climbed to reach the highest result since April on the back of strong performance across all segments. Total lifestyle LFLs led the pack for the first time since August.
“The week was characterised by unsettled weather with strong winds and spells of rain for many as well as snow and ice in northern areas of the UK. The same week last year saw a mixture of foggy and overcast conditions with cold temperature and intermittent rainfall.”
Overall footfall jumped by +21.4% this week compared to the equivalent week last year. Climbing by +25.6%, high street footfall recorded the largest growth this week and highest increase since the second week of July. Shopping centres and retail parks both saw their best growth since April with figures of +21.3% and +12.4% respectively.
