It was another bumper weekend for Black Friday deals this year, with stores receiving a 32 per cent boost in retail spending compared to the November average, and a 22 per cent increase on last year, according to a new study.
Data from cloud-based point of sale software Vend also showed the level of discounting was 77 per cent higher this year compared to last, as retailers looked to beat out the competition and cash-in on keen shoppers. And discounts increased even further on Saturday, at levels 120 per cent higher than last year.
Year-on-year retail spending jumped the most in Manchester – increasing by 115 per cent – while in Glasgow spending rose by 81 per cent and in Edinburgh by 45 per cent.
Stores in London also saw a 27 per cent increase in spending compared to last year, however spending in both Bristol and Birmingham dropped slightly. Saturday was also a bumper sales day across the country, up 13 per cent from last year.
However when looking at Black Friday against the November average, every region saw a spike, including Bristol which has the biggest jump in spend, up 167 per cent compared to the average Friday in November. This was followed by Manchester (140 per cent) and Birmingham (95 per cent).
Marc Cooper, vice president EMEA at Vend thinks that it is great that retailers are still seeing such high levels of shopper spend on Black Friday deals, but with the rise in discounting it could be a double-edged sword.
Cooper adds, ‘Last year we saw discounting drop off slightly on the Saturday, while sales stayed high, which was where retailers could recoup some of their profits. This year, discounting increased even further on Saturday and sales didn’t reach the same heights as the Black Friday deals.
‘Retailers need to be careful they’re not devaluing their products too much by slapping on big discounts and losing margin so close to Christmas. However, if this rise in spending is a sign of strong consumer confidence and demand heading into the holiday season, then that’s great news for the industry.’
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