CHRISTMAS shopping and Black Friday helped boost sales last month, giving retailers a “smidgen of hope”, according to latest figures.
Total sales in Scotland last month increased by 8% compared with November 2021, when they grew by 2.6%, the SRC-KPMG Scottish Retail Sales Monitor showed.
Adjusted for inflation, the year-on-year change was 0.6%. On a like-for-like basis, Scottish sales increased by 5.5% compared with November 2021, when they had increased by 1.8%.
Ewan MacDonald-Russell, deputy head of the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC), said: “There was a small but welcome boost to Scottish retail sales in November as shoppers took advantage of discounts to belatedly begin their Christmas shopping.
“Sales rose by 0.6% in real terms as consumers took advantage of the plethora of deals around Black Friday. Food sales hit a record high of 12.5%, an inevitable consequence of record food price inflation.
Non-food sales were boosted by sales of colder-weather clothing as winter started to bite and early Christmas gifting.
“In contrast to last year when Christmas shopping happened earlier, it appears consumers were waiting for November promotions and discounting to galvanise them into shops.
“These figures will give retailers a smidgen of hope as we enter December’s make-or-break trade. However, that optimism is heavily tempered by the reality that household incomes remain significantly squeezed under the pressure of rising food and energy bills.
“Therefore, retailers will look with great interest at the Scottish Budget tomorrow, hoping at the very least that the government follows the approach in England and Wales and freezes the business rate.”
The monitor covers the four weeks from October 30 to November 26. It showed that total non-food sales increased by 4.2% in November compared with November 2021, when they had increased by 6.7%.
Adjusted for the estimated effect of online sales, total non-food sales increased by 4% in November versus November 2021, when they had decreased by 7.5%.
SRC and KPMG said the sales figures are not adjusted for inflation, which is running at historically high levels, so a portion of the sales growth will be a reflection of rising prices rather than increased volumes. Paul Martin, UK head of retail at KPMG, said: “November sales growth may have been marginal, nevertheless things have moved in the right direction for Scottish retailers.
“Black Friday bargains gave a much-needed boost to retailers on the high street and online, who will be hoping that consumers who can afford to do so continue to spend money on gifts and food.
“For some struggling retailers already hit hard as consumer confidence and spending declines, and costs continue to rise, the next few weeks could be critical to their survival.”
