UK retail sales rise 3.7% in April, high street recovery stalls: BDO

Retailers across the region continue to struggle to drive consumer spending on the high street, with sales in-store increasing just 2.3 per cent, compared to a negative base in April 2024 of -1.7 per cent. Not only does this mean that in-store sales have barely recovered from last year’s poor performance, but it also means that actual sales volumes shrank, as this is once again below the rate of inflation, as per BDO’s ‘High Street Sales Tracker’.

The lifestyle and homewares sectors recorded particularly poor performances in-store. In-store sales declined -1.2 per cent in the lifestyle sector, with in-store sales in the homeware category growing just +0.9 per cent compared to a negative base of -1.5 per cent in the same month last year.

The warm weather during April provided a boost for fashion sales but stores still struggled to capitalise on this. Sales in-store grew by 5.2 per cent, but this is against a base of -8.3 per cent in April 2024, meaning that the category has failed to recover from this poor performance.

“While April’s results may initially appear positive, it was a month boosted by warm weather and seasonal events such as Easter and school holidays, which typically help to drive consumer spending. It’s clear that there is a cloud of uncertainty around economic issues such as the introduction of trade tariffs and cost increases, which has had a material knock-on effect on consumer confidence and their willingness to spend,” said Sophie Michael, head of retail and wholesale at BDO.

“When household finances are under pressure, consumers will understandably reduce their spending in discretionary categories like homewares and lifestyle and prioritise spending on experiences with family and friends. While online retailers are still managing to record sales growth, high street stores are really struggling to get shoppers through the door,” added Michael.

“The high street is at real risk of being hollowed out if retailers can’t find a way to entice shoppers back into stores. Alongside the squeeze on the consumer purse, there has been a shift in purchasing behaviour and there is increasing competition for discretionary spend. Retailers need to look at how they invest in new tactics—for example embracing trends like the growth of pre-loved fashion and the circular economy – and operate with agility, scaling the initiatives that work and learning from those that don’t,” she further added. “While some trends may appear as a real threat to traditional retailers, their pace of growth means that retailers need to explore adopting activities which complement such trends to enable them to successfully navigate this shift in consumer behaviour.”

ALCHEMPro News Desk (SG)