Even as the lockdown measures began to be eased, retail footfall across shops in Britain remained low as stores selling non-essentials stayed shut through the month of May. According to the BRC, retail footfall across high street stores, retail parks and shopping centers in Britain was down by 81.6% YoY in May, slightly better than the 84.7% fall seen in the previous month.

Non-essential retail outlets are set to open from today, which could hopefully improve these figures in the present month. UK PM Boris Johnson expressed optimism that this move would help improve consumer confidence and revive economic recovery, “I think people should shop and shop with confidence but they should of course observe the rules on social distancing and do it safely as well.”

However, chief executive at BRC, Helen Dickinson, adopted a more cautious tone about retailers experiencing sudden relief and sharp recovery at the prospect of reopening their businesses after the lockdown that started back in March. Even as stores reopen, consumers are likely to remain wary about the possibility of the second wave of coronavirus cases and may not rush to open stores for shopping for non-essentials.

According to Dickinson, “A mix of low consumer confidence and limits on the number of people able to enter stores mean that many shops will continue to suffer lower footfall – and lower sales – for some time to come.”