Christmas is falling short of expectations for the UK's retailers, as new numbers show shoppers are staying off the high streets.
The latest figures from FootFall show that while shop visits have risen 2.2% in the last week, footfall is still down 3.7% over last year.
The decrease, however, was not unexpected.
According to the report, retailers used heavy promotions and discount offers to get shoppers into their stores at the beginning of November and start their festive shopping early.
But firms were not able to sustain those levels of shop visits and have since seen quieter weeks.
Meanwhile, consumers are waiting for stores to come back with better offers and promotions, the report said.
Time, though, may be on the retailers' side.
"It's too early to predict doom and gloom," said Natasha Burton, marketing manager at FootFall.
"People have now had their last pay packet before Christmas and we expect that the retailers' efforts to entice shoppers, with special deals and offers, will pay off in the long run, as the reality of just four weeks to Christmas starts to hit home."
Burton suggested that widely reported predictions of snow may have also helped to reduce footfall levels. Prospective customers may have postponed shopping trips, she said and will resume them in the next few weeks.
