York's high street enjoyed a better festive season in 2022 than the year before, but retail footfall across the north of England still hasn't reached pre-pandemic levels.
According to figures from York Bid, York’s shops had more customers through their doors between Boxing Day and the New Year in 2022 than in 2021.
In-store footfall across the city was consistently between 25 per cent and 40 per cent higher than 2021, a York Bid spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added: "While we don’t yet have spending data for this period, it’s a positive indication that consumers were out spending in the sales."
However, in the days leading up to and including Boxing Day, retail intelligence analysts RetailNext, found that the footfall across the North of England was lower than the footfall of 2019.
Footfall across the north was down by 11.8 per cent when compared to 2019, but had climbed by 26.3 per cent when compared to 2021.
RetailNext has speculated that the fall in shopper numbers may have been down to rail strikes and travel disruptions as well as the rising cost of living.
Joe Shasteen, global manager, advanced analytics, said: "In the first festive period unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic, the retail sector would have been hoping for a bounce in footfall, but rail strikes and the cost of living crisis have compounded to create a hugely challenging time for retailers.
"As the rising cost of living continues to impact the amount of discretionary spend for consumers, this perhaps highlights how important pricing and promotions will be over the next 12 months."
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