The winter sales, weighed down in particular by concerns about the spread of Covid-19, got off to a very bad start. They are down nearly 30% from the pre-pandemic period in its first five days, according to consolidated figures from the Trade Alliance released on Tuesday.
The Alliance (department stores, clothing, footwear), which co-produces a panel of around forty brands representative of the clothing market with Retail Int, reports a drop in turnover of precisely 29% over the first five sales days (including the first weekend of sales) compared to the first five days of the period in 2019. In terms of in-store traffic, the drop is even greater, with footfall down by 35%.
“An essential month to rebuild cash”
Yohann Petiot, managing director of the Trade Alliance, lamented “sales off to an extremely bad start, which is impacting businesses as it is a critical month to rebuild cash.” Professionals generally agree that it is during the first weekend, then during the first 10 or 15 days of sales, that a large part of the sales is made.
In addition, in-store clothing sales in 2021 logically remained far from their 2019 levels, with a decline of -16%. However, they did better than in 2020 (+9%) and, taking into account only the stores that remained open over the whole period, sales are up slightly by 1% between 2019 and 2021.
The Alliance of Trade and Retail Int. finally observed that the changes in consumption habits induced by Covid-19 (decline in attendance, dynamism of local shops and outlying shopping areas, etc.) were confirmed in 2021. However, pre-pandemic habits have to regain ground in the second half of 2021 (more window-shopping and impulse purchases, including at major commercial sites) when the health context has eased.