Boxing Day Sales to be Muted as a Result of Delayed Black Friday, Other Clearance Sales
According to estimates by the Centre for Retail Research and VoucherCodes, UK consumers are expected to spend over £4bn in Boxing Day sales a day after Christmas, but the effect of these special offers could be dampened by price cuts that have been around for the past month. Stores are expected to generate around £3.2bn worth of sales, 12% lesser than in the previous year.
November’s Black Friday sales received more shoppers than what the Boxing Day sales are expected to bring in this year. In 2018, the volume of shoppers on Black Friday was 30% higher than on Boxing Day.
There is anticipated to be a decline of around 11% in shoppers visiting high streets, shopping centres and retail parks this year when compared to Boxing Day 2015. The delay in Black Friday this year saw more shoppers opting to spend during the day’s offers instead of waiting for the traditional bank-holiday sales post Christmas.
Moreover, several retail stores announced clearance sales in the days leading up to Christmas, giving consumers valuable offers on their purchases ahead of the Boxing Day sales. According to the Centre for Retail Research, online sales on Boxing Day could touch £1.1bn, over 10% higher than in 2018.