Indie retailers hold nerve for last-minute rush as consumer confidence rises slightly
With a couple of shopping days left, including that all-important final mad Christmas Eve panic-buying fling, there’s all still to play for on the retail front.
Indie retailers are holding their nerve for the last-minute rush, as Cards & Gifts Dronfield’s co-owner Carl Dunne told PG Buzz: “No doubt this Saturday will be as busy as hell with all the men out shopping lol!
“Last weekend was so busy for us, it was great – just like the old days, hectic and queueing at the tills. This week already has been a great start and we’re now seeing the wrap moving fast.
“Royal Mail stamps have hit rock bottom as customers have been saying they are done with Royal Mail, so it was hand delivery for them. As per news I saw last night in the new year first class stamps are likely to be going up to over £1 each. I think this will hit us all next year so I’m unsure for the year ahead.”
And the increase Carl saw in Sheffield is backed up by figures from market research company GfK, where its Consumer Confidence Index increased by an albeit modest two points in December to -42. With five individual measures making up the overall index score, it is still at a historic low, but the numbers have shown gradual improvement from the lowest point of -49 In September.
In the Home Counties, House of Cards retail group co-owner Miles Robinson commented: “My hunch for all this week is it will go nuts with the weather being warmer and non-delivery of online purchases forcing people into the High Street. However, it will be nowhere near enough to make up.
“Last week’s trade was shocking – as a group we were 15% down on last year. Stamp sales were catastrophic as, when Royal Mail did manage to sell them to us, they couldn’t deliver them. It was a perfect retail storm for sure.
“The strikes have been awful for us, stamp sales are down 50% on last year, mainly due to non-delivery, and this has impacted on card sales, especially boxed/packaged, as customers cannot buy stamps or guarantee cards they send will arrive. RM have certainly done a great job in reducing card sending for sure!”
But for Heidi Early, co-owner at Earlybird Designs in London’s Soke Newington, there was better news even though she admits feeling “a bit broken” by the challenges of trading, as Saturday, 17 December, saw the retailer have its “best day ever” which definitely helped her to pick herself up and get back to feeling positive.
She added: “I’m not making any firm predictions this week, if I’ve learned anything it’s that anything is possible! Saying that, I think we’ll have a boost from people not relying on deliveries and actually coming to the High Street to shop. And once they’re in the shop we have the opportunity to blind them with amazing customer service and remind them why shopping in person is such an enjoyable experience.
“Christmas card pack sales have been slightly slower but not by as much as I thought and stamp sales have stayed strong but I do expect that to change this week.
“Once I got over my blip with the strikes and our broadband breaking it just really made me think about next year and how, as an industry, we need to work together with the GCA and do an even bigger campaign about the importance of greetings cards as a whole.”
Up in Edinburgh, December started well for Paper Tiger owner Michael Apter, although the postal strikes have impacted on its online business, and his two shops saw a good final pre-Christmas weekend.
Michael said: “Everyone wound the clock back to about 2007 and went back to the High Street – we saw really significant footfall in the city centre. It feels like people are ready to come back and enjoy that big city experience for the first time since the pandemic, and shoppers are also out in big, big numbers for the start of the week.
“I’m expecting a really busy week in the run up to Christmas Eve, and have a feeling that I’ll be pretty happy with the numbers by the time we get to Hogmanay.”
Philip Nield, co-owner of Reflections in Nantwich and Rugeley, commented: “Trade has been very good and it is very busy so let’s hope for a good last week with one extra day. We have actually had an increase on single Christmas cards, many of which are given and not posted, and also gifts and chocolate, but boxed assortments are about 25% down in both shops, which may indicate that people have not been willing to post them due to the strikes.”
In Lancashire, Mark and Marion Flaherty, of Garstang’s Best Wishes, are enjoying a “very busy” December, telling PG Buzz: “Gifts are selling well, as one customer said ‘we aren’t risking having anything delivered, if we can’t get it in Garstang it’s not happening’!
“We’re now on the final week and, so far, things are going well with the usual shift at this stage from cards to gifts and wrapping. The Royal Mail strike action has affected the sale of cards, mainly boxes, but customers are still buying the individual family/titles.
“Let’s hope they can find a way to move forward with the post and make a better trading future for us all, Happy Christmas to all the Independents out there, hope you have a successful last few days and a well-deserved rest.”
Top: Reflections’ Christmas window
