UK retail sales improved in August as shoppers “splurged on self-care”, according to the latest monthly report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG.
Total retail sales increased by 4.1%, up from 1.5% in July and 1.0% in August last year.
Sales of non-food products had their best month since February, particularly for health and beauty products, said BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson. But there was weaker growth for clothing and footwear as families delayed spending on children’s uniforms and other back-to-school items until the last minute.
Dickinson added that overall, the sales figures reflected an improvement in consumer confidence in August.
However, with inflation still higher than normal, the rise in sales is thought to have masked a drop in volumes after taking inflation into account.
The latest official figures show that CPI inflation stood at 6.8% in July.
Paul Martin, UK head of Retail at KPMG, said that price rises are “heading in the right direction”, albeit slowly, and shoppers will be on the lookout for Christmas bargains earlier in order to stretch their budgets.
“With shoppers becoming more calculated and aware of what they are getting for their money than we have seen for a long time, retailers will have to fight harder for every sale.”
