Easter boost for High Street

SHOPKEEPERS enjoyed a boost in visitors over Easter as the warmer weather encouraged consumers to flock to the High Street.

Visits surged by 6.5pc on Good Friday compared with a year earlier and climbed by 1.2pc on Saturday. By noon yesterday, activity had rocketed by 8.4pc.

The figures by analyst Springboard will come as a major relief for the High Street, which suffered a slump last year after storms forced families to stay at home.

But a fall in visitors to shopping centres and retail parks dragged down the figures.

Diane Wehrle, at Springboard, said: ‘Consumers clearly wanted to be outside rather than visiting covered malls. Even in retail parks, where shoppers gravitate to buy garden furniture and plants, footfall declined by 2.4pc on Good Friday and 1.3pc on Easter Saturday.’