High street shops, pubs and restaurants lose out as Britons relax on the sofa in February
Soggy February weather and continued cost of living pressures put a dampener on retail sales last month, with growth slowing to just over 1% as many households saved cash by snuggling up on the sofa.
Sales of non-food items slumped by 2.5% in the three months to February – led by declining demand for footwear, household appliances, furniture and clothing – amid weak consumer confidence, according to the latest retail sales monitor from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the advisory firm KPMG.
