Bad times in store for Capital shops

Published on Saturday 25 October 2008 10:54

RETAILERS in the Capital said today that they were facing up to "difficult" times, despite a rise in the number of people visiting the city centre in the last three months.

New figures from the city council's footfall monitoring service show a 17 per cent rise in average footfall between July and the end of September compared to the previous three months.

The average weekly pedestrian count across the city centre was 126,669 in the third quarter, compared to 105,136 in the second.

But retailers say that the figures mask the impact that the economic downturn is having.

John Lewis – seen as a barometer of the retail sector – said sales at its Edinburgh store had declined by 3.5 per cent in the three months to October 18.

The crisis in the financial services sector is said to be having an impact on consumer spending.

Gordon Drummond, general manager at Harvey Nichols in Edinburgh, said the third quarter would always be expected to be busier than the second.

But he added: "We had a fantastic July, then August was disappointing. It was still okay but the weather had a big impact.

"When the HBoS (merger] announcement was made, that lowered spending. I think we saw a bigger hit that week than the other (Harvey Nichols] stores because in Edinburgh we rely so much on financial services."

The council's 18 footfall counters are at a range of locations, with the biggest footfall recorded outside Marks & Spencer on Princes Street, where 16.7 per cent more pedestrians were counted in quarter three than between April and June, reflecting the citywide rise.

However, Verdict Research said this week that retailers were set to face their worst Christmas in more than a decade.

Hazel Tierney, operations manager (selling) at John Lewis in Edinburgh, said that its home department has suffered as a result of "economic downturn" but said fashion and beauty had held up well.

"It is difficult for all retailers at the moment," said Ms Tierney. "If we're not in a recession now we will be soon. But the rise in footfall shows that, despite that, Edinburgh does still have an appeal."

House of Fraser said it had invested in drawing people into its stores by offering them a range of benefits and incentives.

Cllr Tom Buchanan, the city council's economic development committee convener, said: "These figures show that despite the economic downturn, Edinburgh continued to do well over the summer period and that our city centre is still seen as a vibrant place to visit."