Retail footfall drops across the UK in May
By Josh White
Date: Friday 13 Jun 2025
(Sharecast News) - Retail footfall across the UK declined in May, fresh industry data revealed on Friday, marking a slowdown in consumer activity as the summer season started.
According to the latest BRC-Sensormatic Footfall Monitor, total visits to retail destinations fell by 1.7% year-on-year, a sharp contrast to the 7.2% increase recorded in April.
High streets saw the steepest decline, with footfall dropping 2.5% compared to May 2024.
Shopping centres followed closely with a 2.3% decrease, while retail parks experienced a marginal gain of 0.2%, significantly lower than April's 7.5% rise.
All four UK nations experienced year-on-year drops in footfall.
England recorded the largest fall at 2.0%, followed by Northern Ireland at 1.4%, Scotland at 0.7%, and Wales at 0.4%.
"Despite favourable weather throughout May, footfall took a disappointing turn last month, following a more promising start to the year," said British Retail Consortium chief executive officer Helen Dickinson.
"While stock markets stabilised, higher household bills depressed consumer sentiment and the appetite to visit retail stores.
"Retail parks performed the best of all locations, though only registering a slight uptick in shopper traffic."
Dickinson said there was also positive news in the North West, as Manchester's string of summer activities solidified its position as one of the top-performing English cities.
"Retailers work hard to deliver vibrant, engaging shopping experiences that attract customers and boost footfall across the UK.
"However, the Chancellor's 2024 Budget added £5bn to the industry's costs, hampering their ability to do so.
"The government must now ensure that upcoming reforms to business rates to be announced in the 2025 Budget leave no shop paying more."
Andy Sumpter, retail consultant EMEA for Sensormatic, commented that despite the warm and sunny weather - more typical of peak summer than late spring - footfall didn't quite follow suit, suggesting that consumers may have favoured outdoor leisure over shopping.
"Still, May's result is a marked improvement on the -3.6% seen in the same month last year and reflects a more stable trend in 2025 overall," he said.
"Encouragingly, consumer sentiment has shown signs of improvement, with more shoppers feeling optimistic about their personal finances and the wider economy.
"Notwithstanding ongoing cost pressures, retailers will be looking to make hay while the sun shines - focusing on the right mix of experience, value, and convenience to convert seasonal footfall into sustained growth."
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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