Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Thousands of Scots were out in force today taking advantage of cut-price Boxing Day sales - spending an estimated £587,000 per minute in stores and online.
Insiders said big Boxing Day bargains may have helped retailers avoid a knockout blow over the festive period, although overall footfall was down on last year. Barclays Bank claimed the average shopper was expected to fork out £236 yesterday - amounting to a £4.6billion spending spree in shops and online across the UK.
A separate estimate suggests Scots had splashed out a cool £317million on Boxing Day deals. Bosses at shopping centres across Scotland were upbeat, with David Pierotti of Glasgow’s Silverburn Shopping Centre saying: “Retailers have really pulled out all the stops.” It comes as people’s shopping habits are changing with more and more Scots preferring to shop online for deals rather than heading to high streets and malls in person.
That, along with wet weather and the squeeze on household finances , had led many shop owners to worry about their Yuletide takings. Shopper footfall was down 10.6 per cent from last year across all UK retail destinations as of 10am on Boxing Day - and 13.
9 per cent lower in shopping centres - according to analysts MRI Software In some malls, leading retailers like M&S, Next and John Lewis opted to stay closed on Boxing Day in a f.