MRI Springboard’s Forecast for Footfall
over the Coronation Weekend
Diane Wehrle, MRI Springboard’s Marketing and Insights Director sets out her forecast for footfall over the Coronation weekend.
The Coronation weekend will be a once in a lifetime event for UK consumers, offering a spectacle never seen before by most of the population. It is taking place the week following the early May bank holiday when footfall rose by around +12.9% as consumers enjoyed the warmer weather and the longer day light hours.
Due to the rise in footfall last weekend, on Saturday – the day of the actual coronation service- we predict that footfall in high streets will be -7% lower than on the previous Saturday but -10% lower in shopping centres. The stronger result in high streets than in shopping centres is likely to be a result of some town and city centres holding events to celebrate the coronation, and installing screens so that consumers can watch the coronation service from the town centre. We have forecast that footfall in retail parks will be -5% lower than the week before, following an average increase in footfall in retail parks of +4.5% over the early May bank holiday weekend, driven by purchases of home and garden products as consumers make the most of two bank holiday weekends.
On Sunday 7th May we anticipate that footfall across all UK retail destinations will be marginally lower than on the previous Sunday (-2%), but again a rise in footfall in high streets is forecast as screens in town centres will be showing the coronation concert making them attractive destinations for friends and families to gather for meals and drinks. In shopping centres footfall is forecast to be -8% lower than on the previous Sunday as high streets represent a greater lure with their strong representation of bars and restaurants from where customers can enjoy the coronation concert. Footfall in retail parks on Sunday is forecast to be -2% lower than on the previous Sunday.
On Monday 8th May footfall is forecast to be marginally lower than on the Late May Bank Holiday Monday (-0.5%), with drops of -8% in retail parks and -1% in shopping centres, but with a forecast rise of +6% in high streets as shoppers enjoy the last day off before returning to work and school on the following day.
The forecast change in footfall from the week before suggests that over the weekend as a whole footfall across all UK retail destinations will be +4% higher than over the same weekend in 2022, but still -10% lower than over the same weekend in 2019.
Notes: Diane has over 30 years’ experience in retail and is regarded as one of the leading experts on retail and retail destinations, with an unparalleled knowledge and expertise in understanding current and emerging retail issues and consumer trends. Diane regularly commentates on the performance of retail for national broadcast and print media, appearing regularly on BBC, Sky News and Bloomberg. As a founding director of MRI Springboard (established in 2002), Diane specialises in delivering intelligence and insights on both current retail performance and long term retail trends to retailers, hospitality occupiers, landlords, investors and place managers, and was recently named as one of the world’s 100 top retail influencers in 2023 by Rethink Retail for the third year running.
Join our upcoming webinar as Diane Wehrle, Marketing & Insights Director, takes a deep dive into footfall performance across UK retail destinations throughout the first half of 2023. In this insightful session Diane will analyse the continuing effect on footfall and spend in retail destinations from hybrid working and the key economic challenge from rising interest rates and inflation.