Sales from Black Friday are forecast to grow faster than the UK retail market in the fourth quarter of 2018, with high levels of spending anticipated both before and after the event.
Spend during the promotional period* will account for 10.5 per cent of overall retail spend in Q4. Heavy discounting will continue to see growth slow year on year throughout 2018, as struggling retailers continue in their efforts to entice shoppers to spend.
According to data and analytics company, GlobalData, fashion & beauty will be the best performing sector during the forthcoming Black Friday period, forecast to grow by 3.8 per cent on 2017. The electrical sector, traditionally the driving force behind Black Friday, is set to be overshadowed by other sectors this year, as shoppers increasingly consider major kitchen appliances and small domestic appliances ‘replacement’, rather than ‘upgrade’ purchases.
The home sector is anticipated to be the weakest performing sector this year, with many big retailers such as B&Q opting out of the bargain drive.
Zoe Mills, Retail Analyst at GlobalData, says: “The Black Friday event has a big impact on the timing of purchases over Q4 – 39.9 per cent of 2,000 UK shoppers surveyed in November 2018 stated that they intend to purchase an item on promotion during the discounting period and of those shoppers, 55.8 per cent are delaying a purchase to benefit from anticipated reduced prices.
“It highlights how Black Friday is encouraging shoppers to hold back buying full price items and purchasing during other discounting periods prior to the event as shoppers predict that retailers will drop prices even further during Black Friday, heavily impacting retailer sales in the weeks prior to the event.”
With digital technology and social media now key to helping retailers overcome certain business challenges and gain access to potential new customers, investment in this area is fast becoming an important element of a retail business’ strategy.
At Beavis Morgan, we work with a number of retail businesses, helping them with strategic planning, system implementation, business turnaround and improving business performance for the future.
For further information about how we can help you and your retail business, contact Steve Govey or your usual Beavis Morgan Partner.
* Black Friday period is defined as Monday 19 November – 26 November 2018 inclusive, is forecast to grow by 3.1 per cent when compared with 2017.
Further reading: Preparing for the peak retail season – Tips for SMEs