Yahoo Finance More sunshine on Easter Monday - but is it good for business?
Britain is set for a hot and sunny Easter Monday as the good weather continues across the bank holiday weekend.
Temperatures are expected to peak at 25-26C today, after Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland saw their hottest Easter Sunday on record.
Several newspapers carried reporTts over the weekend of an £11.5bn Easter spending spree, as experts predicted the hot weather would drive up sales.
But good weather is not good news for all retailers, and the latest retail figures suggest a more complicated picture for businesses over the weekend so far.
The Centre for Economics and Business Research predicted garden centres and DIY stores would enjoy a particularly strong weekend, with sales expected to soar 8.5% on last year.
Are you travelling home on #EasterMonday? 🚗
Find out what the weather's got in store along with some tips for drivers from our friends @TheRAC_UK #BankHolidayMonday pic.twitter.com/ymyqSlbren
— Met Office (@metoffice) April 21, 2019
But figures from retail data firm Springboard suggest out-of-town retail parks, where many DIY stores and garden centres are based, actually saw footfall drop 2.4% on Friday and 1.3% on Saturday versus last year.
Indoor shopping centres also saw a sharp drop of more than 11% in trade on Friday and Saturday, the Guardian reports.
Russ Mould, director of AJ Bell Investment, told BBC Radio 5 Live the weather was so hot it may have put households off visiting retail parks and indoor spaces, with families keen to enjoy the outdoors instead.
“You wouldn’t have thought people want to get in the car and under cover. People will not go big ticket, they won’t go and buy a telly,” he said.
Many shops are also closed or trade limited hours for part of the Easter weekend, which can affect sales.
READ MORE: Brits face record-breaking weekend of hot weather
But he and other analysts predicted sales of summer clothing and barbecues would soar, and cafes, restaurants and destinations like National Trust sites are also expected to enjoy a bumper weekend.
Anne Alexandre, of the British Retail Consortium, said: “When the weather is good as forecasted, consumers are attracted to the summer ranges of clothing and footwear, which are available in the shops, leading to good fashion sales.
“With many shops closed on Easter Sunday, fashion sales can often give way to spending on family activities, particularly on a sunny day.”
Nearly half of UK retailers have said weather is one of the three biggest drivers of demand, according to research by the Met Office.
But its latest research suggests warmer weather only helps sales at some times of the year, and can actually hinder it at others.
