August 2025: Home appliances, home accessories and DIY drive growth
Linda Ellett, UK Head of Consumer, Retail & Leisure at KPMG, said:
“The high summer temperatures continued throughout August, with retail sales also on the rise.
Non-food goods grew around 2%, with moderate growth in the housing market helping to continue the upturn in home related purchases. Sales of many home goods have been seeing monthly increases since the spike in property transactions ahead of the Stamp Duty changes back in April. Home appliances, accessories, and DIY and garden goods all saw sales growth in August. New product launches also boosted mobile phone sales, with computing related purchases rising ahead of the new school year.
Retailers will be reflecting upon their summer performance and what has and hasn’t sold well, as they plan their stock levels for the final ‘golden’ quarter of the year that includes Black Friday and Christmas.”
Read August's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
June 2025: Household appliances and homeware drive growth
“Home appliances and homeware purchases helped retail sales to grow in June, as new homebuyers and those having a refresh in their current home took advantage of summer promotions both in-store and online.
Warm weather and the start of the holiday season led to modest growth for clothing sales, but retailers will be hoping that the buying is not yet complete, and the pace picks up further in July and August as suitcases get packed and the sun hopefully keeps shining"
Read June's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
May 2025: A strong month for food and drink
“While the sunshine continued, the pace of retail sales growth didn’t in May. Early seasonal purchases were likely a factor, as was a dampening of some spending appetite as households reflected upon the recent combination of essential bill rises. But May still saw slight growth, driven mainly by food and drink, with non-food purchases falling overall.
Travel demand for the summer months ahead looks healthy, so retailers will be hoping June sees an upturn in related spending as people begin to think about what they want to pack in their suitcase.”
Read May's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
April 2025: A fifth month of consecutive growth
“Retail sales have been showing growth for five months now. The pace of that growth picked up in April due to Easter and the drier weather fuelling clothing and garden related sales, while the uptick in house buying ahead of the Stamp Duty changes likely filtered through to a boost for furniture and DIY related sales, as well as other homewares.
Consumers tell us they are still taking steps to manage their household budgets, so retailers will need to focus on how they can continue to unlock spending over the coming months to keep the growth going - including capitalising on purchases related to strong summer holiday demand."
Read April's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
March 2025: Competition is heating up for retailers
“As Spring weather arrived, house and garden related purchases and gifts for Mother’s Day drove retail sales growth in March.
Amidst downbeat consumer confidence in the UK’s economic outlook, and many households facing rising costs, retail sales growth feels an achievement. But with non-food sales only climbing around 1% on average, competition means there are some retailers really struggling whilst others win, especially online. Retailers will be pushing for higher growth rates as we move toward summer and holiday season, particularly as they are now paying higher wage costs and facing volatility and potential impact on their supply chains due to global tariffs.”
Read March's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
February 2025: Consumers remain cautious
“Consumers remain cautious with their spending and many are continuing to prioritise saving, travel and experiences. Nervousness about the economy is deferring other big ticket purchasing, but occasions and offers are still tempting shoppers into some impulsive spending. Valentine’s, for example, brought a jewellery sales boost to the high street, in what was otherwise a flat month for in-store buying.
Online non-food sales growth is outpacing in-store and while shops will always be a key part of many retailers’ strategy - rent, rates, and employment costs all must be factored in. As we have seen already this year, firms are increasingly scrutinising where best to be located and the implications of the likes of recently announced employment cost rises. Online shopping and the growth of social commerce has contributed to a lowering of demand for some physical retail stores and boardrooms will continue to keep a close eye on monthly footfall and sales data as 2025 progresses.”
Read February's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
January 2025: sales growth for the start of the new year
“2025 got off to a welcome start for retailers with much needed sales growth in January. But viewed over a three-month period that included Christmas and Black Friday, non-food sales have flatlined. Overall, the golden quarter failed to shine.
The trading environment remains tough for retailers, with consumer demand still subdued and household essential bills still high. Business costs are also coming under pressure, with rising employment costs only increasing that in the coming months. Boardroom focus on costs and competitiveness is sharpening. Pricing adjustments, product launches, store closures, job losses, and increased automation and AI are all set to reshape the retail landscape in 2025.”
Read January's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
December 2024: A positive end to the quarter
“With Black Friday falling as late as it did, this year it was part of the Christmas shopping season even more so than in previous years.
December, coupled with Black Friday week at the end of November, delivered welcome sales growth for retailers. Computing and mobile phones, and beauty products, particularly saw sizeable jumps in sales both in-store and online, with the likes of AI-enabled tech and beauty advent calendars boosting festive takings.
However, sales growth during the golden quarter of October to December was minimal, reflecting the ongoing careful management of many household budgets during a time when many costs remain at a heightened level compared to past years.
In 2025, we will see retailers increasingly utilising customer data and AI technology to deliver increased personalisation when it comes to targeting products and offers to their current, and potential, customers.”
Read December's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
November 2024: A disappointing month for retailers
“Along with the cold snap at the end of the month, retail sales also went into minus numbers for November.
An upturn in health product buying also signalled that the colder months had arrived and, along with food and drink, was one of very few categories to see in-store or online sales growth.
While the majority of November’s data tells a disappointing tale for the retail sector, this reporting didn’t include Black Friday week, so the hope for retailers is that consumers were being savvy shoppers and that the promotional push in the last days of the month saw held-back consumer spend materialise and mitigate what is otherwise a disappointing month. If not, then we may see some retailers launching Christmas sales early.”
Read November's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
October 2024: A mixed performance with a hopeful outlook
“While October’s growth didn't continue at the levels seen for the retail sector in September, retailers will feel that there is mitigation and that they can pick up the pace again in November.
Speculation about the impact of the Budget, a holding back of demand until Black Friday promotions, and a later half term break all impacted retail sales data over the last month.
With clarity now provided by the Budget and many households escaping paying increased tax from their wages, retailers will be hoping for an upturn in consumer confidence and spending. Any positivity from retailers though will of course be dampened given the increased employment costs that they face.
The promotional weeks around Black Friday will be the first real test of post-Budget consumer sentiment, with retailers looking to electronics promotions and new AI-linked products to build on the computing and mobile phone sales growth that has been one of the better areas of sales performance in recent months.”
Read October's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
September 2024: Green shoots for computing and clothing
“September saw modest, but welcome, sales growth for retailers. Children’s clothing, footwear and accessories saw a boost from the start of the school year, with household budgets feeling slightly less constrained for some parents compared to last year.
Similarly, the return to work after summer holidays also led to an upturn in adult clothing and footwear sales. With record rainfall levels in some counties, the cold and wet weather in September sped up purchases of extra layers and wet weather gear.
With energy prices having again risen, all eyes now turn to the Budget and what impact that will have on household discretionary spending in the final quarter of the year.”
Read September's report complete with sales data from the British Retail Consortium.
