According to the retail analysts, the sunny, warm Easter weather gave UK retailers a much needed a boost over the Bank Holiday weekend, with household spending up 8.5% over the week, compared to the same week last year, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research.
At gift and lifestyle shop Papyrus in Glasgow, owner Fiona Fabien told GiftsandHome.net: “Year-to-date sales have been strong, and we are sitting at an increase of 5% on the year to date. With the political uncertainly at the moment nothing is taken for granted and we have been pleasantly surprised that trade has been this buoyant.”
Fiona continues: “We had unexpectedly warm weather for Valentine’s week in February, and a long lead up to Mother’s Day and Easter, with all these factors working in our favour. Thanks to the warm weather over the Easter weekend – Easter Saturday saw record breaking temperatures – trade continued to be good. As long as the sun shines, our customers are out in their droves. The café and leisure culture has increased over the years in the Byres Road area where Papyrus is situated, resulting in an increase in footfall.”
Along with fashion and home accessories, Fiona confirms that lifestyle trends have been the biggest influence on sales over the last year. “The environment and global warming are a huge issue and concern for our customers and our staff alike,” she explains. “Just as this has influenced our day to day running of the business, from how we dispose of our waste to which products we stock, customers are changing the way they live and what they spend their money on. They’re thinking about their carbon footprint, and perhaps not getting into their cars and driving to out of town shopping centres. I think there’s the beginnings of a move for customers to shop and source locally – if they don’t use us they may lose us!”
She adds that replacing single use products with sustainable alternatives, as well as cutting out plastic, is big on the agenda and is having a huge influence on gift purchases. “Recyclable, biodegradable, reusable, plastic free and products that replace single use items are all best sellers at the moment. Coffee cups from A Short Walk, where the outer thermal layer is made from recycled single used cups, is a perfect example. Beeswax food wrap has been a surprisingly good seller despite the price tag. We have also seen a large upturn for products such as stainless steel straws and stainless steel lunch boxes from Black and Blum, to bamboo lunch boxes. This trend has helped our average spend to increase as these items tend not to be at the lower price points.”
Also drumming up business is the fact that more people are holidaying in the UK. As Fiona explains: “It has been reported that many people could staycation this year because of the uncertainties of Brexit and travelling in Europe, so this is another factor for increased spending at home. Tourist spending isn’t our main focus, but we do get our fair share of foreign visitors and they are continuing to spend well as sterling remains weak,” she continues. “However, we don’t take anything for granted. The uncertainty that Brexit is causing isn’t going to go away any time soon – deal or no deal – and inevitably it will continue to affect confidence and sterling. If we get a cold wet summer, quite common in Scotland, our present upturn may be more difficult to sustain.”
Figures from Springboard confirmed that high street figures increased by 6.5% on Good Friday, were up by 1.2% on Easter Saturday, and surged by 8.4% on Easter Monday by comparison to the same week last year which was hit by storms. However, the warm sunshine had the reverse effect on shopping malls and retail parks which saw a drop in footfall over the Easter weekend.
