By Scott Wright

THE deep challenges facing the Scottish retail sector have been underlined by new figures showing a dramatic downturn in high street and shopping centre footfall in January.

Scottish footfall plunged by 72.5 per cent year on year in January after the whole of the country was moved into the highest level of lockdown conditions to halt the spread of coronavirus, figures published by the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) today reveal.

The figure marks a 22.3 percentage point deterioration on year on year figures published for December, during which non-essential retail outlets were permitted to open in the two weeks before Christmas. Scotland moved into level 4 of its lockdown system on December 26.

According to BRC-ShopperTrak data, Glasgow saw a bigger year on year footfall drop in January compared with the figure for Scotland as a whole, with a decrease of 75.5%. This was a 15.75 point percentage drop from December.

However, the Scottish fall was lower than the UK average decline of 76.9%.

With the Scottish Government confirming on Monday that the current lockdown will continue until at least the end of February, the SRC called on ministers to outline a path for the re-opening of non-essential retail soon.

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Director David Lonsdale said: “Footfall nosedived last month, down almost three quarters on the same period a year ago, as shoppers heeded the government’s order for people to stay home.

“It was the worst month for shop visits since last May, and was witnessed across all retail locations, unsurprising with shoppers really only able to go to pharmacies and food and pet supply stores and with click and collect and food-to-go takeaway curtailed by fresh restrictions from the middle of the month.”

The figures from the SRC come amid a bruising period for the high street, with shop closures and trading restrictions sparked by measures to suppress coronavirus leading to tens of thousands jobs losses at bricks and mortar retailers.

Last week, it emerged that Debenhams department stores would be closing for good after boohoo Group secured a £55 million deal with administrators to buy the retailer’s intellectual property, including its brand and website. However, the deal did not include Debenhams shops, which are expected to close with the loss of around 12,000 job cuts.

A further 2,500 retail jobs are likely to go following the £265m acquisition by Asos of the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands from the administrators of Arcadia, the retail empire built by Sir Philip Green. The deal does not include any of the brands’ 70 stores.

Boooo has been holding talks with the Arcadia administrators for the stricken retailer’s Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton brands.

Mr Lonsdale said: “Hopefully, government will make clear the route back to re-opening stores soon.

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“Whilst a return to trading is crucial, it will not be a panacea for the industry. Even when we emerge from the current enforced hibernation it is likely that shops will be unable to trade at capacity due to physical distancing and caps on the number of customers in stores.

“That’s why we hope to see a broader recovery plan from government for when stores are permitted to re-open, one which includes short-term action to kick-start consumer demand and transactions but which also provides clarity over rates relief for the second half of 2021.”

The SRC’s latest footfall figures show that Scottish shopping centre football fell by 76.5% year on year in January, compared with the UK decline of 78.2%.

While the immediate outlook for high streets and shopping centres looks bleak, Andy Sumpter, retail consultant EMEA for ShopperTrak, offered an optimistic assessment for the coming months.

He said that “it’s important to remember that when retail has reopened from lockdown, demand for in-store shopping has returned each time.

“And while the pandemic may have accelerated ‘retail Darwinism’, those that have used this time as an opportunity to reset and invest in the operational foundations to meet new demands will be well-placed to capitalise on pent-up demand for the in-person shopping experiences we have all been missing, as well as setting themselves up for strong, long-term growth.”

The SRC has welcomed the three month extension of business rates relief for retailers, but says further support for the sector will be needed.