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Retail woes continue as sunny September slows fashion sales

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Fresh figures from the British Retail Consortium show UK retail sales were up by 2.5 per cent year on year last month, which is a growth of more than five per cent from last year.
Fresh figures from the British Retail Consortium show UK retail sales were up by 2.5 per cent year on year last month, which is a growth of more than five per cent from last year.

September proved to be another tricky month for retailers, with growth up just 0.2 per cent on last year, hit by hot weather and the cost of living crunch.

According to latest figures from the accountancy firm BDO, clothing retailers saw sales fall 3.4 per cent during the month, compared with a 6.7 per cent rise last September.

Temperatures hit highs of 30C in September, hurting the earnings of fashion brands that had already wheeled out their autumn collections. 

This poor performance was also largely driven by in-store sales declining by five per cent. 

BDO said this was the 14th month in a row that sales growth has been lower than the rate of inflation, meaning that sales volumes have continued to decline each month, painting a gloomy outlook for retailers.

Sophie Michael, head of retail and wholesale at BDO, said: “The context of these results, comparing back to September 2022, is really important, we saw very weak sales growth in that period amid the economic uncertainty prompted by the government’s ‘mini budget’.”

“Performing so poorly against such a weak base will be really worrying for retailers.”

She added: “The unseasonably warm weather in September may have been welcomed by some, but the ongoing impacts of climate change on our seasons can’t be ignored by the sector. 

“To succeed, they have to return to the key fundamental of ensuring that their product offering is relevant and topical to entice their customer to buy.”

A September footfall reading from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) also showed that high street traction decreased by 1.7 per cent year-on-year, against a 0.9 per cent decline in August.

Meanwhile, shopping centres footfall decreased by 4 per cent  in September year-on-year, against 3.8 per cent in July. 

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: “High streets and retail parks held up slightly better as the return to school helped increase the number of shopping visits at the start of the month.”

“Retailers will want to invest in their properties in the run-up to Christmas, but the prospect of a £400m increase to business rates next year will limit their capacity for improvements. The Chancellor should announce a freeze to rates at the Autumn Budget in November.”