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Early Easter helps boost footfall despite geopolitical turmoil
By Abigail Townsend
Date: Thursday 09 Apr 2026
(Sharecast News) - Retail footfall ticked higher in March, industry data showed on Friday, boosted by the early timing of Easter.
According to the latest BRC-Sensormatic footfall monitor, total UK footfall rose by 2.4% in the five weeks from 1 March to 4 April. Easter Sunday fell on 5 April this year, whereas 2025's later timing meant the long weekend was included in BRC-Sensormatic's April reporting period.
The largest increase was seen at shopping centres, where footfall rose 2.6% year-on-year. Retail parks saw a 2.5% jump, while on high streets, footfall increased by 2%.
Andy Sumpter, retail consultant, EMEA, at Sensormatic, said: "March brought a welcome return to growth for UK retail footfall, the first positive month in nearly a year.
"On the surface, this marks an encouraging shift in momentum. However, the improvement needs to be viewed in context. Much of March's uplift was driven by an Easter boost; last year's comparison was also relatively weak due to the later timing of Easter, amplifying the apparent growth.
"Without the final week's Easter bump, March would likely have remained in negative territory."
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: "With Easter and the school holidays falling earlier this year, retailers were expecting a stronger boost to footfall than March delivered. Warmer weather might help sustain footfall in the months ahead, but without an Easter uplift in April, momentum is far from guaranteed."
She added that conflict in the Middle East was weighing "heavily" on both retailer and consumer confidence, and warned that further pressure on the cost of living would likely hit footfall.
Global energy prices soared throughout March in response to war in the Gulf, reigniting inflation fears and dashing hopes for imminent interest rate cuts. A tentative ceasefire between the US and Iran, agreed earlier in the week, saw oil prices come off recent highs but they remain elevated.
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