The high street is suffering as shoppers stay at home

Initial customer data suggests that shoppers are avoiding high streets and shopping centers on Boxing Day compared to last year.

Data collected by MRI Software shows morning footfall on UK high streets fell by 10.2% compared to 2023, while shopping centers saw a 13.9% fall in footfall at 12:00 GMT.

The preliminary figures are an early sign that online shopping continues to dominate traditional Boxing Day sales.

Although trading is expected to continue to be brisk in many stores on Thursday, major retailers such as John Lewis, M&S and Next have decided not to open most of their stores as they wanted to give their staff a break over the holidays.

Lorna, one of those shopping on Boxing Day, was bargain hunting in Liverpool with her mother and sister.

She told BBC News that for the first time this year she decided to leave a little later, arriving in Liverpool’s shopping district at 10:30am.

“Me and my mother come every Boxing Day. We usually wake up at 5am and stand in line. We have been here every year for 10 or 15 years, but this is the first time we are late,” she said.

Dave, another shopper in Liverpool, joked that although he wouldn’t be going shopping on Boxing Day, he had made a deal with his wife.

“I go shopping with her and she comes with me to the Liverpool game,” he said.

Data to date suggests store visits are nearly 36% below pre-pandemic levels.

Compared to December 26 last year, overall Boxing Day activity at 12pm was down 9.4% across all UK retail destinations.

Analysts have told BBC News that brick-and-mortar stores are becoming less profitable because they are expensive to open due to rising energy costs and, for some, overtime paid for staff on public holidays.

Online stores are cheaper to operate and typically have lower overhead costs.

MRI Software’s Jenni Matthews said a year-on-year increase in footfall is expected from December 27.

But she added that this year’s drop in Boxing Day shoppers was a “huge contrast” to 2023, when footfall by midday was almost 3% higher than last year.

“This could be a reflection of changing consumer behavior influenced by the ongoing cost of living crisis,” she said.

Sales volumes in clothing stores recently fell to their lowest level since January 2022, according to ONS figures, with retailers blaming economic factors.

UK retail parks, which often offer free parking and are more suitable for larger stores, fared slightly better, only recording a 6.8% decline in footfall compared to last year.

In many ways, Boxing Day is no longer a major shopping event in itself, as it was in the past.

Many retailers begin their online sales on Christmas Eve, and brands also offer sales throughout the year, including around Black Friday in November.

“Boxing Day has lost its luster,” said Natalie Berg of NBK Retail, who said the decision by major retailers to remain closed could help them with recruitment.

The expert also argued that buyers have “advertising fatigue.”

“Considering some Black Friday deals started on Halloween this year, which is the earliest deal I’ve ever seen, it’s no surprise we’re all sold out on Boxing Day,” she said.

Diane Wehrle, analyst at Rendle Intelligence and Insights, said that among those choosing to visit places on Boxing Day, the focus was on spending on things to do rather than things to buy , was relocated.

She added that shopping habits have been changing for more than a decade as more consumers choose to shop online.

Barclays, which says it processes almost 40% of the country’s credit and debit card transactions, predicts Brits will spend a total of £4.6 billion on Boxing Day, compared to £4.7 billion in 2023.

It expects the lion’s share of spending to occur online – similar to 2023, when 63.9% of Boxing Day retail purchases were made online, according to the bank’s data.