Retail experts believe that Scotland’s holiday season may be less lucrative for retail businesses than usual. New figures from the Scottish Retail Consortium show a tiny 1.6 per cent increase in total sales compared to December of last year – a level that, by most measures, falls below the economy’s inflation rate.
Despite the very small increase in spending, retailers are optimistic about this year’s holiday season. Consumers have been cautious with their Christmas budgets but are spending more than in the 2012 holiday season, which was a disappointing period for many Scottish retailers.
The 1.6 per cent increase in spending has largely been driven by food sales, which are up 2.3 per cent from the same period in 2012. Non-food sales have increased by 1.1%, with apparel having the largest effect on retail sales growth. The SRC took an honest approach to the figures, calling them “acceptable but unexceptional.”
Scotland has experienced the lowest rate of Christmas retail growth of all UK retail markets. Total UK growth over the past twelve months has been 2.3% – indicating an overall cautious approach to holiday spending throughout the nation.
While the low growth rate has hurt some retailers, others believe that consumers are waiting until closer to Christmas to buy their gifts. David Martin, head of policy at the Scottish Retail Consortium, believes that consumers are “holding off on much of their seasonal spending until Christmas gets closer.”
When only like-for-like sales are measured – sales which exclude factors including new store openings – total retail spending is down 0.6% for the year. Analysts have pointed to the rising cost of living in many UK cities as a reason for the downturn in retail spending, as well as the effects of the longest recession in recent history.
