Scottish footfall decreased by 17% in October, compared with 2019 figures, a 2.7% increase from September.
The latest Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) and Sensormatic IQ data showed that this is below the UK average decline of 13.7%.
For the third consecutive month, Scotland saw the deepest decline in footfall of all UK regions, except for London.
Shopping centre footfall declined by 26.3% last month in Scotland, year-on-year with 2019, up from a 30.1% fall in September.
In October, footfall in Glasgow decreased by 18.4%, up 2.4% from September.
David Lonsdale, director at the SRC, said: “Retailers can finally spot a chink of light after a couple of dismal years, as Scots started their Christmas purchases in October by rediscovering the pleasure of in-person shopping.
“The improvement was felt across all retail destinations, although the recovery in Scottish footfall remains protracted and continues to lag every other part of the UK other than London.
“While these figures strike a more optimistic note, there is some way to go before the industry turns the page on the pandemic.”
Total footfall by region (% change with 2019)
GROWTH RANK |
REGION |
% GROWTH Yo2Y |
1 |
North West England |
-8.7% |
2 |
South West England |
-10.0% |
3 |
Northern Ireland |
-10.8% |
4 |
East Midlands |
-10.9% |
5 |
East of England |
-11.2% |
6 |
Yorkshire and the Humber |
-11.6% |
7 |
West Midlands |
-11.7% |
8 |
South East England |
-12.4% |
9 |
Wales |
-13.1% |
10 |
England |
-13.7% |
11 |
North East England |
-14.2% |
12 |
Scotland |
-17.0% |
13 |
London |
-21.4% |
Andy Sumpter, retail consultant for Sensormatic Solutions, commented: “October’s footfall bounced back after the September slowdown, as traffic was bolstered by half term and Halloween - now retail’s third-biggest trading event after Christmas and Easter.
“Some of the lift in footfall performance, which saw retail parks in particular rise to their highest point of recovery since the start of the pandemic, may also be attributed to early Christmas spend, as retailers brought forward Christmas range launches to help smooth out supply chain bumps ahead of the peak trading period and consumers also indicated they would shop earlier for the festive season this year.”
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