Spending predicted to be up just 0.4% on 2022 as inflation and Amazon warehouse strikes hit discount event
Shoppers are expected to snap up fewer items during the Black Friday sales, which reach their peak this weekend, as the cost of living crisis and strikes at some Amazon warehouses dent trading.
British consumers are expected to spend slightly more this year than in 2022, but data indicates they will buy fewer goods when the impact of inflation is stripped out.
Almost £8.7bn is expected to be spent between Friday morning and Monday night, according to analysis by GlobalData for Vouchercodes. That’s just 0.4% up on last year, compared with inflation of 3.4% in non-food items in October, according to the British Retail Consortium trade body.
Retailers have been running discounts for weeks as the warm start to the autumn left some with high stocks of clothing and footwear while households have been cautious about spending on non-essentials amid high food and energy bills.
Unlike in previous years, when shoppers have been pictured battling for bargain TVs and other expensive homewares on Black Friday, this time spending is expected to be focused on discounted Christmas presents.
Spending in the run-up to Black Friday has been muted with online retailing body IMRG recording a 6.2% drop in sales in the second week of November after a 0.5% rise in the first week. It is predicting Black Friday spending online will be down 2%, led by a drop in sales of ready-packaged gifts and clothing.
