Mixed Christmas performance data for UK retail
UK retail saw mixed results over the Christmas period with high footfall but relatively low sales.
MRI Software, a data gathering tool for footfall analytics, recorded a 3.9% rise over Christmas in 2025 compared to 2024.
The highest surge of visitors was on Boxing Day with MRI stating it was the largest footfall increase seen in a decade.
However, the wider picture isn’t one of Christmas joy as total spending in December rose at the lowest pace for seven months.
Total retail sales (including online sales) increased by just 1.2% year on year compared to 3.2% in December 2024, and non-food sales specifically decreased by 0.3% year on year against a growth of 4.4% the previous year.
Though footfall was the strongest it had been in terms of growth since 2011, in-store non-food sales decreased by 0.5% in December, below the 12-month average of 0.9%.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive at the British Retail Consortium, commented: “It was a drab Christmas for retailers, as sales growth slowed for the fourth consecutive month.
“Many people were clearly holding out for discounts, with the last week showing significant growth off the back of Boxing Day and beginning of the January sales.”
