UK retail sales declined in May but at a slower pace as restrictions to contain the spread of [coronavirus][1] eased, data from the British Retail Consortium, or BRC, showed Tuesday.
Total retail sales decreased 5.9 percent year-on-year in May, slower than the 19.1 percent fall in April. Meanwhile, like-for-like sales increased 7.9 percent from the same period last year.
While the month showed record growth in online sales, many retailers will be anxious to see whether demand returns to our highstreets when non-essential shops reopen from 15th June, Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive at BRC, said.
Weak consumer confidence and social distancing rules are likely to hold back sales, Dickinson noted.
Stores may soon have the greenlight to re-open but it will be a gradual affair with safety front of mind, and some doors may not reopen at all, Paul Martin, Partner, UK Head of Retail, KPMG said.
“COVID-19 has acted as an accelerant in the shift towards having less of a physical presence, not least due to the obvious need to radically reduce costs for survival,” Martin added.
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