Christmas sales and footfall data reveal mixed outlook for retail sector in 2025

Retail footfall and sales figures for the December and the festive season have revealed a mixed outlook for the sector for 2025.

With household spending continuing to the be squeezed, discount supermarkets Aldi and Lidl have both announced record breaking Christmas performance. Aldi saw a 3.4% increase in sales in the four weeks leading up to the big day, hailing 2024 as its “best Christmas ever”: sales of seasonal products rose 10% year-on-year, while its premium Specially Selected range rose 12%. The discounter also recorded its busiest ever day of trading on 23rd December, with 3 million customers served.

Fellow German discounter, Lidl, also reported a surge in festive sales, with its UK turnover exceeding £1 billion for the first time, and will kick-off 2025 with a further eight store openings.

Despite busy aisles in the supermarkets, however, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has revealed a disappointing December for other bricks-and-mortar retailers. The organisation’s latest footfall data for the so-called Golden Quarter of 2024 from October to December saw total UK footfall down 2.2% compared to 2023. For the five weeks from 24 November to 28 December 2024, BRC-Sensormatic data saw high street footfall down 2.2% on December 2023, shopping centre footfall down 3.3%, and retail park footfall unchanged on the previous year, despite the late Black Friday weekend helping to bolster performance.

Christmas results from courier firm, Evri, suggest more Brits instead looked to online options when doing their Christmas shopping. The firm has revealed it handled 173 million parcels in the nine weeks to 28th December, peaking at 3.8 million daily deliveries on 4th December.

Bookshop chain, Waterstones, however, is one brand that has shared strong festive results, and has revealed plans to open a further 12 stores in 2025, with last-minute shoppers on the weekend before Christmas boosting sales. Clothing retailer, New Look, meanwhile has announced plans to close up to a quarter of its 364 UK stores ahead of rising wage bills when higher rates of Employer NICs and a higher National Living Wage take effect in April.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said:

“Shopping habits have been changing fast and customers are increasingly looking for more experiential shopping, as well as a variety of cafes, services and things to do. Unfortunately, investment in town centres and high streets is held back by our outdated business rates system, which penalises town and city centres. The Government’s proposals to reform business rates may ease the burden for some retailers, but it is vital that, ultimately, no shop ends up paying more in rates than before. With retailers facing £7 billion in additional costs this year from increased tax and regulations, the changes to the business rates system must be made in way that supports retail investment and growth in the years ahead.”