Frenzy Friday will see stores overwhelmed by a £1.5billion gift rush as shoppers shop for last-minute Christmas gifts, analysts reveal
- Tens of thousands of people will join ‘click and collect’ queues to tackle the delivery crisis
- Supermarkets will be packed as people line up for fresh food
- Retailers including Boots and Currys are launching their Boxing Day deals today
Shops prepare for the busiest shopping day of the year as shoppers shop for last-minute Christmas gifts and high streets battle the impact of austerity and strikes.
An estimated £1.55billion is set to be spent today – Frenzy Friday – with just over £1billion of that at bricks and mortar stores.
And a number of retailers, including Boots, Currys and AO.com, are continuing the sales by launching their Boxing Day deals today, with savings of over 50%.
An estimated £1.55billion is set to be spent today – Frenzy Friday – with just over £1billion of that at bricks and mortar stores. People are seen above on Regent Street in London
Tens of thousands of people will join ‘click and collect’ queues to tackle the delivery crisis caused by Royal Mail strikes and overwhelmed courier companies.
At the same time, supermarkets will be packed as people rush to buy fresh food.
Retail analyst Springboard, which measures the number of shoppers, estimates today’s total will be up 12.3% from a week ago and around 6.5% more than the equivalent day last year.
But he said the numbers would likely be much lower – around 16% – than pre-pandemic levels.
High streets and malls have suffered as households cut festive spending amid the biggest cost-of-living squeeze in 70 years. They have also been hit by rail strikes, which have led to a sharp drop in the number of visitors to city centres.
Tens of thousands of people will join ‘click and collect’ queues to tackle the delivery crisis caused by Royal Mail strikes and overwhelmed courier companies. At the same time, supermarkets will be packed as people rush to buy fresh food. Shoppers are seen in Oxford Street
Retail expert Susannah Streeter, of investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ‘High streets and malls are hoping for a final wave of gift shopping, with Friday set to be the biggest shopping day. busiest of the year, but sales are still likely to disappoint.
‘The latest wave of strikes is set to put a damper on online sales, with warnings from retail bosses that walkouts at Royal Mail mean they cannot guarantee deliveries, and other delivery companies like Evri struggling with pressure.
“Brick-and-mortar stores are unlikely to make up for the drop in online demand given that strikes by railway workers are also disrupting travel to city centres.”
Andy Sumpter of Sensormatic Solutions, which measures shopper numbers, said: “We expect ‘Frenzy Friday’ to be one of the busiest in-store shopping days of the peak retail season, as shoppers rush to the store to finalize their Christmas shopping.’
VoucherCodes, which produces spending forecasts, said Friday’s figure is expected to be around £1.55billion.
Laura Suter, personal finance manager at investment platform AJ Bell, said: “A quarter of people plan to reduce the amount they spend on gifts this year.”
There are big savings as some stores start their Boxing Day sales early. At Boots, the price of No7 5 Steps to Radiant Skin has been reduced by 50% from £18 to £9, at AO.com, an Asus Vivobook Go 14-inch laptop in Peacock Blue is down 26%, dropping from £269 to £199 and at Currys a Lenovo Smart Clock Essential with Google Assistant has been reduced by 53% from £39.99 to £18.99.
At House of Fraser, the price of a James Lakeland ruffled midi dress has been reduced by 60% from £225 to £90, while at Decathlon a Nabaiji open water wetsuit is down 41%, dropping from £169.99 to £99.99.
