London Retail Sales Fall in November

Monday 15th of December 2008 04:09:55 AM

London Retail Sales Fall in November

Consumers in London are just not buying much this quarter as evidenced by the November decline in sales. Retail sales including the sales of everything from sweatshirts to household goods, and all categories are coming in lower when compared to the same period a year ago. This is not surprising in the least given the economic conditions that exist right now. The United Kingdom is in a recession which has not hit bottom yet.

The November London retail stores were .4% low when compared to November of last year on a like-for-like basis. The lower sales are occurring despite deep discounting taking place in stores. Retailers that sell house wares, clothing and shoes are offering plenty of bargains in an attempt to lure consumers to their stores.

Helen Dickinson is the Head of Retail at KPMG. She was quoted as saying, "The trend of a fall in sales in central London, which was seen for the first time in nearly three years in September, has continued for the third month in a row with a drop of 0.4% percent in like-for-like sales. The fall is smaller than that of the UK. High levels of promotional activity and a weak pound encouraging overseas tourists remain the key drivers behind keeping consumers in the capital shopping."

London retailers, like UK retailers across the nation, are hoping the special VAT reduction put in place for the holiday season will promote more consumer shopping during the pre-Christmas season. The Director General of the British Retail Consortium, Stephon Robertson, said, “The economic crisis is hitting confidence in London particularly hard. But the capital's retailers are responding with high-profile discount days and promotions on a scale I've never seen before at this time of year. “This has been a very difficult year for retailers across the board with a 2.6% decline in sales for the United Kingdom.