Frenzy Friday will see stores swamped in £1.5bn gift scramble

2022-12-22

Frenzy Friday will see stores swamped in £1.5BILLION gift scramble as shoppers snap up last minute Christmas presents, analysts reveal

Tens of thousands will join ‘click and collect’ queues to combat delivery crisis
Supermarkets will be rammed as people make a final dash for fresh food
Retailers including Boots and Currys are starting their Boxing Day offers today

Stores are gearing up for the busiest shopping day of the year as customers snap up last-minute Christmas gifts and high streets fight back against the impact of austerity and strikes.

An estimated £1.55billion is expected to be spent today – Frenzy Friday – with just over £1billion of that through bricks and mortar stores.

And a number of retailers, including Boots, Currys and AO.com, are chasing sales by starting their Boxing Day offers today, with savings of more than 50 per cent.

An estimated £1.55billion is expected to be spent today – Frenzy Friday – with just over £1billion of that through bricks and mortar stores. People are seen above on Regent Street in London

Tens of thousands will be joining ‘click and collect’ queues to combat the delivery crisis caused by Royal Mail strikes and overwhelmed courier firms.

At the same time, supermarkets will be rammed as people make a final dash for fresh food.

Retail analyst Springboard, which measures shopper numbers, believes the total today will be up by 12.3 per cent on a week ago and some 6.5 per cent more than the equivalent day last year.

But it said the numbers are likely to be well down – around 16 per cent – on pre-pandemic levels.

High streets and shopping centres have been suffering as households cut back on festive spending amid the toughest cost of living squeeze in 70 years. They have also been clobbered by rail strikes, which have seen a sharp fall in visitor numbers to city and town centres.

Tens of thousands will be joining ‘click and collect’ queues to combat the delivery crisis caused by Royal Mail strikes and overwhelmed courier firms. At the same time, supermarkets will be rammed as people make a final dash for fresh food. Shoppers are seen in Oxford Street

Retail expert Susannah Streeter, of investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ‘High streets and retail centres are hoping for a last burst of present-buying with Friday forecast to be the busiest shopping day of the year, but sales are still likely to disappoint.

‘The latest wave of strikes is set to put a dent in online sales, with warnings from retail bosses that Royal Mail walkouts mean they can’t guarantee deliveries, and other delivery firms like Evri struggling under the pressure.

‘It’s unlikely bricks and mortar stores will offset the drop in online demand given strikes by rail workers are also disrupting travel into town and city centres.’

Andy Sumpter, of Sensormatic Solutions, which measures shopper numbers, said: ‘We anticipate ‘Frenzy Friday’ to be one of the busiest in-store shopping days of the peak trading season, as shoppers dash into store to finalise their Christmas shopping.’

VoucherCodes, which produces spending predictions, said the figure for Friday is likely to be around £1.55billion.

Laura Suter, head of personal finance at investment platform AJ Bell, said: ‘A quarter of people plan to cut the amount they spend on presents this year.’

There are big savings as some stores start their Boxing Day sales early. At Boots the price of No7 5 Steps to Radiant Skin has been cut by 50 per cent from £18 to £9, at AO.com an Asus Vivobook Go 14in Laptop in peacock blue is down by 26 per cent from £269 to £199 and at Currys a Lenovo Smart Clock Essential with Google Assistant has been reduced by 53 per cent from £39.99 to £18.99.

At House of Fraser the price of a James Lakeland Ruffle Midi Dress has been cut by 60 per cent from £225 to £90, while at Decathlon a Nabaiji open water glideskin wetsuit is down by 41 per cent from £169.99 to £99.99.

Source: Read Full Article