Rain dampens festive sales for local retailers

Rain dampens festive sales for local retailers

During what is a critical period for many businesses, customers in both Jersey and the UK appear to have been opting to stay indoors.

According to statistics released by UK footfall analysts Springboard, the number of people heading to the shops across Britain was nine per cent lower last Saturday compared to the same day last year.

Gerald Voisin, owner of Voisins department store, said that the rain had had a negative impact on sales but added that Jersey retailers were in a better position than those in the UK.

‘The weather has definitely affected trade but there is no reason to panic if the weather picks up. Town definitely appeared to be quieter during the last two Saturdays,’ he said. ‘I would not say that I am confident [that sales would improve] and I do not think we are going to have a disaster but I do not think it is going to be a bumper Christmas either.

‘It should be similar to last year, maybe slightly less.’

Mr Voisin added that despite the weather, it was still very difficult to say how stores were performing during the festive season until after Christmas.

He also said he was hopeful there would be a last-minute surge.

‘The trouble is that Christmas Day always moves around and we will never really know how we have performed until the turkey is in the oven,’ he said.

‘Last year, the last week before Christmas was great and I think it will be the same this year. I do not think it is as bad in Jersey as it is in the UK where I understand that it has been very difficult indeed.

‘The uncertainty of Brexit does not help when people are trying to plan their expenditure.’

David Cullen, owner of Roulette Clothing, in Beresford Street, said that the start of December had proved extremely difficult with Islanders opting to stay out of the bad weather and instead order gifts online from their offices and homes.

However, he added he was now expecting to have the busiest week of the year with some online retailers now not able to guarantee delivery to Jersey before the 25th.

‘From 1 December it never really stopped raining and we definitely saw our footfall go down,’ he said.

‘Last week was quite good – we did not see a massive improvement on footfall but there were some strong sales.

‘We should see a huge increase in sales this week, especially with people coming home from university.’

But Mark Fisher, sales director at Fotosound, in Charing Cross, said that the store’s past six weeks of trading had been very positive.

‘We have been very busy. We have had a decent Christmas so far but I think we are one of the last ones standing,’ he said.

‘I know some businesses in town have really been struggling because of the weather and the cost of their rent.

‘Apart from a couple of days, like on Saturday when the weather was awful, it has been very good for us – we are probably about 20 per cent up this week compared to the same time last year.’

Outside of town, Samarès Manor has been opening its grounds every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, as part of a Christmas-themed event.

But Seigneur of Samarès, Vincent Obbard, said that attendance had been affected by the poor conditions.

‘It has definitely affected us, very much so,’ he said.

‘We have had a huge number of people expressing interest on Facebook but only a small proportion of people actually coming. But there is still next weekend and we are hoping for better weather.

‘It is the first time we have done this and we certainly plan to keep this going in the future.’

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