Black Friday is a hit for online retailers

This year's Black Friday was a hit for online retailers but did little to help struggling bricks and mortar stores across the UK. Latest figures from Springboard show that overall footfall declined by 5.4 per cent from Black Friday 2017, with a drop of similar magnitude throughout the weekend from last year (-5.6 per cent on Saturday and -4.3 per cent on Sunday). By contrast, Logate/GBG reported that online transactions rose by +46 per cent up to 4pm on Black Friday.

”The drop in footfall to bricks and mortar stores over the weekend is a reflection of the larger discounts offered online,” explains Diane Wehrle, Insights Director at Springboard. “Online is open for business 24 hours a day and is therefore seen as a more convenient option for shoppers. Throughout the weekend, the drop in footfall was most dramatic in shopping centres. This illustrates that many shoppers regard Black Friday weekend as an opportunity for a day out with friends or family, which is likely to include a stop for coffee and lunch during their trip.”

If the trend for Cyber Monday follows previous years it is unlikely that footfall will increase on 26th November. Last year, footfall declined by -6.1 per cent from 2016, and over the past three years the figure has been between 15 per cent and 18 per cent lower than on Black Friday.