Retail sales see boost in March but weather dampens clothing sector

Retail sales saw a slight uptick during March, increasing 3.5 percent according to new figures by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG.

While this appears to be a positive improvement on the month prior, and coincides with a three-month average growth of 2.1 percent, it didn’t hit the more significant increase seen in March 2023, when sales grew 5.1 percent.

For this year, however, it was a 6.8 percent YoY increase in food sales that drove the way, while non-food sales took a backseat with a 1.9 percent decrease over the three-months to March. This was compared to a growth of 1.8 percent in the same month last year.

Drops were seen in both in-store and online non-food sales, which decreased 1.1 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively. For the former, in the year prior there had been a 5.2 percent growth, while the latter had a sharper 2.1 percent drop.

CEO of the BRC, Helen Dickinson, said that while Easter may have boosted the sales of food and cookware, wet weather had dampened the sales of clothing and footwear.

She continued: “After a difficult start to the year, retailers are hopeful that with warmer weather around the corner, consumer confidence will spring back up. A strong retail industry can boost investment across our towns and cities, and as we gear up for a general election, it is essential the next government recognises this and rethinks the burdensome costs imposed on retailers.”