Spend across the city has remained on the decrease for the last two years, and is reflective across the nation as a whole.
March figures were the clear outlier in the quarter with the impact of the Union Street fire impacting both footfall and spend. Compared with March 2025, sales were down 14.2 per cent, reflecting a 3.8 per cent decrease the year to date.
From a sector perspective, general retail is facing significant challenges with sales down 25 per cent year to date.
Whilst other sectors are also feeling the pressure of lower consumer spend, some are growing - such as health and beauty which is up 3.5 per cent compared to the same month the previous year.
