Retail trade - Retailers in NRW disappointed with Christmas business
Retailers in North Rhine-Westphalia are disappointed with sales so far in the weeks leading up to the festive season. "Both customer footfall and sales have increased in the week leading up to the third Advent compared to the previous week, but are still mostly below the previous year's level," said Peter Achten, Managing Director of the NRW Retail Association, according to a statement on Sunday. There is still "room for improvement".
"Gift vouchers, perfumery items, festive fashion and accessories were particularly popular over the counter," Achten reported. "In the home electronics sector, high-quality household appliances, in-ear headphones and everything related to networked home electronics seem to be particularly popular this year."
In a survey conducted by the trade association among its members on Saturday, only a quarter of the retailers surveyed stated that they had already reached or exceeded the previous year's sales figures. Nevertheless, retailers are hoping to make up some ground in the remaining sales days until the festive season, they said.
Experience has shown that good weather and festive lighting help to attract many customers to the city centers. There is one disadvantage for retailers this year: because December 24 falls on a Sunday, late shoppers will not be able to buy presents on that day. However, according to the association, there should be a boost in sales on the fourth Saturday in Advent, especially in food retail.
Christmas sales are traditionally the strongest time of the year for retailers. According to the German Retail Association (HDE), brick-and-mortar retailers generate almost 20 percent of their sales in November and December. Recently, however, business has fallen short of expectations nationwide.
Due to high inflation, many people in Germany are not in a spending mood this year. According to a representative survey by the Institute for Retail Research (IFH), one in three people want to save on presents, as was the case last year. According to the survey, only 49% of Christmas shoppers will go to bricks-and-mortar stores this year, four percentage points less than in 2022.
According to retail expert Kai Hudetz from IFH, Christmas sales were brought forward particularly strongly this year due to promotional days such as Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday. The high discounts had a negative impact on margins and made it more difficult to trigger buying impulses in the days leading up to the festive season.
A recent study by Worms University of Applied Sciences and the management and technology consultancy BearingPoint shows: More than half of Germany's most popular shopping streets recorded a significant year-on-year decline in footfall at the start of the Advent season.
The HDE is forecasting total sales of just over 120 billion euros for this year's Christmas business in November and December. In nominal terms, this represents a slight increase in sales compared to the previous year, but adjusted for price increases, a decrease of 5.5 percent.
IFH survey HDE Christmas forecast BearingPoint survey
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- Despite the popularity of gift vouchers, perfumery items, and high-quality household appliances, retailers in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) are still struggling to reach previous year's sales figures before the turn of the year.
- Many retailers in Germany are hoping to make up for lost sales during the remaining retail trade days before the festive season, even though December 24 falls on a Sunday, limiting late shopping opportunities.
- The turnover for brick-and-mortar retailers in Germany during Christmas sales typically makes up almost 20% of their annual earnings, but this year's business has fallen short of expectations nationwide.
- In Düsseldorf, the trade association has predicted a boost in sales on the fourth Saturday in Advent, especially in food retail, due to the limited shopping opportunities on December 24.
- According to a recent survey, only 49% of Christmas shoppers in Germany will go to bricks-and-mortar stores this year, making for a challenging holiday season for retail trade.
- Since the start of the Advent season, more than half of Germany's most popular shopping streets have recorded a significant year-on-year decline in footfall, impacting overall retail trade numbers.
- To mitigate the effects of high inflation and promote online shopping, many retailers in NRW are offering discounts and promotions on household appliances and in-ear headphones, targeting consumers who prefer to shop from home during the Christmas business.
Source: www.stern.de
