Sensormatic Solutions, the leading global retail solutions portfolio of Johnson Controls, today announced that Super Saturday is expected to be the busiest shopping day of the 2021 UK peak trading period.
The annual predictions for the global top busiest shopper traffic days are informed by retail traffic data analytics within the company’s intelligent operating platform, Sensormatic IQ.
The predicted busiest in-store shopping days in the UK are as follows:
- Saturday, 18th December – Super Saturday (the last Saturday before Christmas)
- Thursday, 23rd December – Day Before Christmas Eve
- Saturday, 11th December – 2nd Saturday in December
- Saturday, 27th November – Saturday after Black Friday
- Saturday, 4th December – 3rd Saturday before Christmas
In its latest report, Sensormatic expects Super Saturday, the last Saturday before Christmas, to be the busiest in-store shopping day of the entire peak trading period in the UK – last year Brits spent an estimated £1.6billion on Super Saturday, as they hit the High Street to buy gifts in-store.
Whilst traditional spikes to footfall are predicted to take place on Super Saturday and on 23 December (the day before Christmas Eve) in the UK, High Street footfall will shift earlier in December, as shoppers make a bid to get ahead with gift buying. With many retailers already warning of Christmas stock shortages due to ongoing supply chain disruption caused by the pandemic and Brexit, consumers are expected to shop earlier than usual to avoid out-of-stocks and shelf gaps. Original research of over 1,000 UK shoppers by Sensormatic showed that 79% will start Christmas shopping before the beginning of December, the traditional start of Advent – and just 9% will leave it until December to begin making festive purchases.
“While COVID-19 is still making headlines as we head into peak trading, vaccine availability and retailers’ health and safety measures have put us in a different place with many consumers more comfortable shopping in stores compared to the 2020 Christmas shopping season,” said Bjoern Petersen, president at Sensormatic Solutions. “Through this busy time, retailers can lean heavily on innovative technology to keep shelves stocked, predict and prevent loss events and keep customers safe through occupancy monitoring and resulting social distancing. Leveraging prescriptive insights provided by connected solutions, retailers can also ensure they’re reaching the right consumer with the right item at the right time throughout the season.”
“Our predicted busiest days mark the peaks of in-store traffic, but we expect that like last year, consumers will start their shopping earlier to offset inventory limitations, shipping delays and ongoing concerns about social distancing,” said Andy Sumpter, Sensormatic Solutions’ Retail Consultant for EMEA, whose team predicts the top busiest days of the peak trading period.
Sensormatic Solutions and its intelligent operating platform for retail, Sensormatic IQ, is a vital component of Johnson Controls OpenBlue technologies and innovations which promotes healthy people, healthy places and healthy planet. Sensormatic Solutions is helping retailers solve complex challenges related to consumer confidence, health and safety as part of its mission.
To learn about the top drivers of this holiday season’s busiest shopping days and how Sensormatic Solutions is supporting retailers’ needs, visit https://www.sensormatic.com/resources/busiest-shopping-days.
