World Cup fever boosted retail sales last month, as shops maintained their growth from May, according to new figures.
Data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) shows that shop sales rose 2.3% on a like-for-like basis in June; although, these come against a weak comparative in June 2005, when sales dropped 0.5%.
Despite a drop in shop visits on England’s match days, the recently concluded World Cup competition helped drive sales of beer, large TVs, sportswear and food.
The BRC also credited hot weather for the continued sales growth, with the summer sun pushing up purchases of DIY and gardening products.
Sales of big-ticket items, however, still remained sluggish.
“Our ability to enjoy the 'festival of football' has offset any downside arising from lower customer traffic in key centres during the high interest matches,” said Helen Dickinson, head of retail at KPMG.
“The level of promotional activity in non-food continues to outpace last year and hence the impact on margins will be felt widely across the sector as the year progresses.
“In the immediate future though, after a month which will have polarised retailers’ fortunes like no other, it’s a case of retailers needing to get back to business as usual.”
The latest figures also show that the three-month trend rate of growth rose to 4.1% last month, up from 2.7% in May on like-for-like sales, and to 6.8% from 5.6% total sales, which reflects the continued growth of retail space, the BRC said.
