The boost to retail footfall, up by 0.8% last month, is maybe being fuelled by shoppers’ worries about ongoing supply chain disruption, especially before the Christmas holidays. With the threat of consumer price inflation becoming reality, shoppers have been busy getting Christmas shopping done and dusted early to avoid stress in the run up to the festive season.

With this early surge in demand, however, comes extra pressure as retailers grapple not just with product delays but also labour shortages. To manage this demand, smart retailers are those that are spreading out seasonal promotions across multiple weeks – for example offering early Black Friday deals and capitalising on the whole month of November. This is key to flattening the peak, both in terms of eCommerce store fronts but also from a fulfilment and aftercare perspective.

Demand will continue to boom as consumers look to spend big over the festive season – especially given Christmas celebrations were so restricted last year. But this means retailers must work even harder to deliver a harmonised experience which can dispel consumer anxieties over stock-outs and enable a slick purchasing experience. Integrating physical stores seamlessly with digital channels can help achieve this – for example expanding Click and Collect capacity by transforming retail shops and store space into operational hubs and pick up locations.