Boxing Day sales fall flat once again

Boxing Day sales are off to a sluggish start as shoppers steer clear of brick-and-mortar stores in favor of online stores.

As of 3pm, visits to UK high streets were down 1.5% compared to 2024, while shopping centers were down 0.6%, according to data from MRI Software.

MRI’s footfall data showed 6.7% more people visiting retail parks compared to last year, but this increase is not large enough to see an overall or significant increase in visitors so far.

Barclays expects shoppers to spend £3.6bn in sales, up from the £4.6bn they forecast for sales in 2024; fewer people plan to bargain than last year. The amount spent online is also expected to decrease.

Although people are still going shopping, figures show that Boxing Day sales are not as big a deal as they used to be.

The Barclays consumer spending report shows those planning to shop have increased their budgets by £17 compared to last year, but overall people are forecast to spend less on Boxing Day sales this year than last year.

Barclays retail director Karen Johnson said consumers were cost-conscious throughout the year and this behavior would be reflected in post-Christmas sales.

But one customer from Glasgow said he preferred the quieter Boxing Day atmosphere.

“Everyone does it at their own pace, I think shopping on Boxing Day is a more enjoyable experience,” he told the BBC.

While the festive period is an opportunity for many retailers to make up for quieter periods of the year, many major brands including Next, John Lewis, Poundland, Wickes and Iceland have closed their stores on Boxing Day.

Another customer in Glasgow said he went out every year simply because it was his family’s tradition.

“It’s definitely a lot quieter than usual,” he noted, “although there was a huge queue at Lush this year.”

Diane Wehrle, CEO of Rendle Intelligence and Insights, said 2025 is a challenging year for many people.

“In the run-up to Christmas consumers have really pulled back on their spending because they’re so nervous, especially ahead of the Budget in November,” he told the BBC.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced tax increases of up to £26bn in 2029-30 in her last budget; This increase will take the UK’s tax revenue to an all-time high of 38% of national income in 2030-31, according to the OBR.

This means household budgets are being squeezed even further, as inflation (the rate at which prices rise) remains stubbornly high despite falling from the peaks seen in recent years.

For employers, higher minimum wage costs and National Insurance contributions announced last year mean they face higher costs in an economy where growth is slow.

Separate festive spending data from Visa showed spending overall rose only marginally in the run-up to Christmas, with electronics spending up 8.4% on the same period last year.

Official retail spending data from the Office for National Statistics for November also Shoppers resist the lure of Black Friday sales and the start of Christmas sales campaigns.

But Ms Wehrle said the proliferation of pre-Christmas discounts and the boom in online shopping meant Boxing Day sales had “really become less important” in the past few years.