Footfall at Scottish retailers down 0.4%

Retailers experienced a disappointing July with new figures showing footfall was down by 0.4 per cent for the month.

It is the third time since January that monthly figures have shown a decline, the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) said.

Both the high street and shopping centres saw footfall drop, with the latter seeing a 2.2 per cent decrease. However, retail parks experienced a 2.1 per cent increase.

The latest figures from the SRC Springboard footfall and vacancies monitor also showed that the town centre vacancy rate in Scotland rose slightly in July.

The rate was up to 9.3 per cent from 9.2 per cent in April.

Ewan Macdonald-russell, of the SRC, said: “This is a rather cheerless set of figures, heralding a second successive quarterly increase in the shop vacancy rate in our town centres coupled with shopper footfall sagging last month.

“Almost one out of every ten retail premises in Scotland now sits empty.

“Encouraging shoppers back is crucial to reducing the number of vacant premises, and retailers and shopping destinations are clearly going to have to work harder to attract custom through a blend of improvements including service, ranges, pricing and promotions.”