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Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted.
Source: ONS/Coresight Research[/caption] [caption id="attachment_98153" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Source: ONS/Coresight Research[/caption]
Retail Sales Growth by Sector
In September, small retailers again drove total sales growth, according to the ONS, with a reported 7.6% increase in sales. Large retailers form the bulk of the sector (about three-quarters of total sales) and account for a very high share of sales in several major sectors such as apparel; these retailers saw growth soften from 3.4% in August to 2.4% in September. Figures for the large-retailer segment are more reflective of the most-watched companies.
In September, grocery sales improved by 3.2%, even as food-retailer inflation moderated to 1.4% from 1.7% in August.
The clothing specialist sector was positive, solely due to the small-retailer segment; large clothing chains saw a 1.0% fall in sales, in an unusually warm September.
Department stores and mixed-goods retailers saw declines at the same pace as in August; major department-store chain John Lewis reported sales declines in three of the four weeks in September. As we note later, online sales declined by almost 5% in this sector in September.
DIY continued to be weak, according to the ONS—although this was against demanding comparatives from one year earlier, when the ONS was reporting double-digit positive growth. Like floor coverings, music and video, computers and telecoms, DIY has been a sector for which the ONS has reported volatile growth rates.
Meanwhile, the reported double-digit uplift for footwear retailers was against comparatives of reported double-digit declines one year earlier.
The ONS recorded shop-price inflation of 0.3% in September, down from 0.6% in August, with the change driven by lower inflation at food retailers. Nonfood retailer shop-price inflation stood at (0.2)%.
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*A small retailer is defined as one with fewer than 100 employees or with revenues of £60 million or less per year; all others are large retailers
**A relatively fragmented sector, in which reported figures have traditionally been volatile
Source: ONS[/caption] Online Retail Sales Growth Total Internet retail sales were up 8.7% year over year in September, versus 11.3% growth in August. In September, Internet sales at food retailers were up 6.3%, while sales were up just 3.7% at nonfood retailers (with sales declining 4.7% at department stores/mixed-goods retailers) and up 12.9% at nonstore retailers.
Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted.Source: ONS/Coresight Research[/caption] [caption id="attachment_98153" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Source: ONS/Coresight Research[/caption]
Retail Sales Growth by Sector
In September, small retailers again drove total sales growth, according to the ONS, with a reported 7.6% increase in sales. Large retailers form the bulk of the sector (about three-quarters of total sales) and account for a very high share of sales in several major sectors such as apparel; these retailers saw growth soften from 3.4% in August to 2.4% in September. Figures for the large-retailer segment are more reflective of the most-watched companies.
In September, grocery sales improved by 3.2%, even as food-retailer inflation moderated to 1.4% from 1.7% in August.
The clothing specialist sector was positive, solely due to the small-retailer segment; large clothing chains saw a 1.0% fall in sales, in an unusually warm September.
Department stores and mixed-goods retailers saw declines at the same pace as in August; major department-store chain John Lewis reported sales declines in three of the four weeks in September. As we note later, online sales declined by almost 5% in this sector in September.
DIY continued to be weak, according to the ONS—although this was against demanding comparatives from one year earlier, when the ONS was reporting double-digit positive growth. Like floor coverings, music and video, computers and telecoms, DIY has been a sector for which the ONS has reported volatile growth rates.
Meanwhile, the reported double-digit uplift for footwear retailers was against comparatives of reported double-digit declines one year earlier.
The ONS recorded shop-price inflation of 0.3% in September, down from 0.6% in August, with the change driven by lower inflation at food retailers. Nonfood retailer shop-price inflation stood at (0.2)%.
[caption id="attachment_98154" align="aligncenter" width="700"] *A small retailer is defined as one with fewer than 100 employees or with revenues of £60 million or less per year; all others are large retailers**A relatively fragmented sector, in which reported figures have traditionally been volatile
Source: ONS[/caption] Online Retail Sales Growth Total Internet retail sales were up 8.7% year over year in September, versus 11.3% growth in August. In September, Internet sales at food retailers were up 6.3%, while sales were up just 3.7% at nonfood retailers (with sales declining 4.7% at department stores/mixed-goods retailers) and up 12.9% at nonstore retailers.