Problems faced by retailers caused by the bad weather could get worse as forecasts tell us to expect more of the same in the final few days before Christmas.
The Met’ Office is expecting more icy weather this week which persuade consumers to stay indoors and postpone or even cancel their Christmas shopping. That will see retailers struggling to gain back their lost sales as consumers coming returning to the shops will then expect to see the unsold seasonal goods at discounted prices.
Sam Hart of business analysts Charles Stanley said: “If there was more bad weather immediately before Christmas then that could well be more of a problem. It may not be a case of postponing the expenditure, they just may never spend the money at all.”
The weather which saw the UK whited out in satellite pictures ground much of the country to a standstill in the coldest November in 17 years. Retailers such as JJB Sports and HMV have already begun to suffer.
The High Street retail market lost an estimated £110 million per day as shoppers determinedly stayed indoors, however November did break records for the amount of money spent online. It should though be borne in mind that the ice and snow keeping them at home may also keep their presents warehoused when they should be under the tree.Home improvement outlets are usually worst affected when the weather turns nasty while clothing stores are reasonably safe as the conditions tend to encourage the sales of seasonal apparel.
Supermarkets and other food retailers could weather any ice-storms better than other groups as people stock up before hunkering down to sit out the ice and snow.
The bad weather is also predicted to adversely affect electronics and domestic appliance sellers as they were counting on customers buying big ticket items such as washing machines, televisions driers and fridges before the VAT rise which is scheduled to hit in January.
