UK retailers suffer 'drab December' as non-food Christmas sales disappoint

"New figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) show overall retail sales rose by just 1.2% in December compared with a year earlier - well below the 12-month average growth rate of 2.3%. While food sales proved resilient, demand for non-food items such as clothing, electronics and gifting products fell flat at the most critical time of the year. Non-food sales slipped by 0.3% year on year in December, a sharp reversal from the 4.4% growth recorded in the same month in 2024."

"Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, described the trading period as a "drab Christmas", noting that sales growth has now slowed for the fourth consecutive month. "Non-food sales fell flat in the run-up to Christmas, with gifting items doing worse than expected," she said. "Many shoppers were clearly holding back for discounts, with a late surge in activity driven largely by Boxing Day and the start of January sales.""

"Food inflation continued to prop up supermarket revenues, however. Grocery prices rose by 4.3% in December, according to Worldpanel by Numerator, pushing average supermarket spending to £476 for the month, around £15 more than last year. Yet the pressure on household budgets remains intense, with 64% of shoppers saying they plan to cut grocery spending in 2026, while more than half expect to reduce discretionary purchases such as clothing and eating out."

British retail sales rose 1.2% in December 2025 year-on-year, below the 12-month average of 2.3%. Non-food sales slipped 0.3% year-on-year in December, reversing a 4.4% growth from December 2024, with clothing, electronics and gifting particularly weak. Retailers cited mild wet weather, weak consumer confidence and heavy discounting as contributors. Sales growth slowed for a fourth consecutive month, described by the BRC as a "drab Christmas". Card spending fell 1.7% in December, the steepest annual decline since February 2021. Grocery prices rose 4.3% in December, lifting average supermarket spending to £476, while many shoppers plan to cut grocery and discretionary spending in 2026.

Read at Business Matters