This Christmas, festive attractions have proved immensely popular with members of the public, with many consumers foregoing the opportunity to buy gifts online and instead turning to the local high street to meet their needs. As a result, experts are predicting one of the most successful Christmases for the retail industry since the onset of the recession – with many pondering whether the plethora of themed events put on by local authorities and shopping centre owners are a factor.
From Edinburgh to Portsmouth and Cardiff to Bridgend, consumers have been enjoying seasonal staples such as Christmas markets, Santa’s grottos and street parties over the past month to mark the run-up to Christmas Day. This, in part, has contributed to a predicted record offline spend by consumers which experts believe will give retailers a positive outlook going in to the New Year.
The boom for the high street began relatively early in the season when, for the first time in several years, Black Friday outperformed Cyber Monday. This was because a large number of popular brands engaged in heavy promotional activity, encouraging independent businesses to drop prices as a means of getting in on the action.
However, the spending peak was not reached until later in the month when consumers turned out in their droves for Christmas markets in locations such as Manchester, Edinburgh and Birmingham. The question, then, is why these festive attractions – along with the growing trend for “Winter Wonderland” events for the whole family – are managing to get consumers on the high street when all else has seemingly failed?
Professor Martyn Bennett of Nottingham Trent University believes that an element of nostalgia plays a part in the desire for Christmas themed events amongst consumers.
He says; “These winter wonderlands are an attempt to accumulate all of the elements we traditionally associate with Christmas, such as greenery, lights and snow.
“In the past, there have been traditions that have brought us together, things like church services, family gatherings, even the Queen’s Speech or television shows.
“Maybe this commercial winter wonderland is an attempt to recreate some of those lost features of Christmas.”
Although not all Winter Wonderlands proved a huge success this year, town centres have enjoyed a huge turnout for Christmas light switching on displays, Christmas street parties and independent retailer markets. Similarly, shopping centres engaging in a little festive cheer have noticed an uptick in footfall levels and consumer spending.
Perhaps, then, the secret to the revitalisation of the high street does not lie simply with expensive redevelopment programmes, consumer studies and business rates revaluations. If retailers can take one lesson from this Christmas, it is that engaging the local community can have a far greater impact than lowering prices and running constant promotions.
The trick now will be to think up events which can run the whole year round!
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