Shoppers return to brick and mortar stores for Boxing Day sales
Brick and Mortar retailers were expecting a Boxing Day boon as shoppers returned to high streets across Shropshire and the UK to take advantage of the post-festive sales.
Boxing Day sales were in full swing in Telford and Shrewsbury on Tuesday.
At the Telford Centre, shoppers began pouring through the doors at 9am to take advantage of the cut priced bargains at stores such as Primark, Boots, River Island, H&M and House of Fraser.
However, a number of shops stayed closed at the centre on Boxing Day including Poundland, Aldi, Specsavers and WH Smiths, with shoppers encouraged to check with individual retailers if they were open on Tuesday.
At the Darwin Centre in Shrewsbury, Boxing Day sales were on all day between 10am and 5pm and saw hundreds flock to the centre to take advantage of the festive bargains.
The Darwin Centre also launched an online competition on to celebrate its Boxing Day sales, inviting people to follow and like its Faceook post for the chance to win a £25 Primark gift card.
Bargain hunters were also expected to descend on online retailers on Boxing Day, although police warned eager shoppers to be aware of scams.
In a Boxing Day message, West Mercia Police tweeted: "After a Boxing Day bargain?
"Beware of purchase scams, when criminals trick people into paying for goods/services that don’t exist. They advertise on auction sites/social media, with images from genuine sellers to convince you they’re legit. Beware of 'too good to be true deals'."
The warning comes as research by Mastercard showed physical spending in physical stores across the festive period was up 3.5 per cent on last year, while online spending had declined by 2.8 per cent.
Restaurant spending sharply increased by 11.4 per cent along with clothing (8.0 per cent) and jewellery (8.3 per cent), according to the research.
The data, shared by Mastercard SpendingPulse for the first time, analysed UK retail spending from November 1 to December 24.
It measured in-store and online retail sales across all forms of payment and was not adjusted for inflation.
Total UK retail sales were up 2.6 per cent year-on-year, and in-store sales were up 3.5 per cent as shoppers came back to the high street.
Electronic sales were also slightly up by 1.9 per cent, but there was a considerable spike on Cyber Monday, with an increase of 9.2 per cent compared with 2022.
Natalia Lechmanova, senior economist at Europe for Mastercard, said: "The British consumer has been savvy with their spending this year. Although overall retail spend is relatively flat, we've seen an increase in spending on Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions when it comes to electronics in particular.
"Shoppers have been willing to splash out for gifts, with spend on jewellery and clothing up considerably year-on-year, but wanted to do so at the right price.
"We've also seen a cautiously optimistic return to the high street. British consumers want to celebrate during the festive period, and we've seen spend on restaurants increase by over 10% as people continue to value experiences and spending time together post-pandemic."
