Retail sales data April 2022

"I am having to fight harder for sales than ever before. Whether it's through the neverending new content I have to produce for social media or upping the amount of emails we send to our mailing list, I really have to be on top of my game right now. To me, the cost of living crisis is more severe than the pandemic as a lot of customers supported small businesses during the various lockdowns. People can't afford to do the same now. We attend regular farmers' markets with our business and both footfall and sales are down at every single one as people don't have the same expendable cash as they used to. We find ourselves having to excel in so many areas of our businesses just to get the same amount of sales as last year: social media, markets, email marketing, SEO, the list goes on. While support was offered during the pandemic for struggling businesses, nothing so far has been offered to me by my local council or the government, so I have had to take the matters into my own hands. To generate more sales for my business and other small businesses, I have leased a shop on my local high street for four weeks over June and July to pull together The Small Business Pop Up. It's a chance for local businesses to be a part of the high street and increase their sales whilst raising their brand profile but at a fraction of the cost and with minimum risk. It will also bring a new and exciting shopping experience to our high street when a lot of the shops now sit empty. Towns, such as Altrincham, have used pop up shops for years to transform their high street and have now seen major improvement."

"Sales are at an all time low for me. When more and more people are having to choose between basics, splashing out on a piece of hand crafted jewellery simply isn’t a priority. Even with payment plans and absorbing ever-increasing rises in the cost of everything from raw materials to postage, my business just doesn’t fall into the essentials category. All of this makes it difficult to find the enthusiasm for making new pieces, meaning I have less new content for social media. It’s a vicious circle and I can’t see an easy way out of it under the current government."

"It all feels entirely hopeless right now. Sales have been the sum total of nil over the past month. It's disappointing but hardly surprising. Many people are having to decide between getting to work or buying food and what I make won't help with either of those things. I am considering winding up my micro business, because trying to do all the right things, with insurance, accountants and so on, is actually costing me pretty much everything I've managed to make. I can no longer afford new materials either, or the fuel to collect them, and postal cost increases are another massive blow. I can't even sell off my tools or supplies right now, because no one can afford to pay a fair price for them."

"I am actually really surprised at the moment how well sales are doing. They're roughly at the same level as last year. Like all retailers, I am naturally worried about the cost of living crisis and how it will impact my business. Living an eco-friendly life is not always the cheapest option and some of my products, although better for the planet, are not better for your wallet. I believe the costs do level out in time, but looking at the bigger picture may not be an option for most people right now. I actually found the pandemic good for my online shop as people couldn't physically get to shops and markets and my products sold very well during that time. At the moment, I am not panicking and I haven't taken any new or different steps yet to improve sales. This may however be something I have to do in time if, or when, sales slow."

"Sales in April and May have been pretty flat for us and we have definitely noticed customers feeling the pinch. They are increasingly choosing "budget friendly" yarns over the more expensive sustainable yarns, which are now seen as a luxury item. We are worried about the rise in price of pretty much everything, which will hamper crafters from being able to continue with their hobbies. People having to choose food and heat over crafting supplies will have a detrimental effect on their mental well-being. The cost of living crisis has caused sales to stagnate, whereas during the pandemic sales were buoyant as crafters had more time on their hands and disposable cash due to being at home more during lockdown. We are trying to increase footfall to the store with sale items to keep cashflow moving and are also looking at innovative ways to reach our customer base and get them shopping locally by matching online prices. Following a recent poll, 95% of our customer base prefers to shop in-store rather than online as it's a much nicer experience and meets their social needs. Since the pandemic, the Government has not provided any financial support for small retailers, which will sadly create casualties on the high street."

"I design and make crochet cactus and fancy animal headpieces. For me, income in April and May have been roughly the same as last year. I swing wildly between feeling confident and downright panic depending on how many or how few sales I’ve had on any particular day. My online cactus sales were fabulous during the pandemic but at the moment are few and far between. Most of my income at the moment is coming from people in the US buying the hats, which are more of a luxury item due to the price. I’ve started to supply more bricks and mortar shops and doing more craft fairs to generate more sales. The Government doesn't seem to be doing anything to help small independent retailers at all."

"It's an incredibly challenging time for small retailers right now. Equally, it's not rocket science as to why. If people are struggling to pay their household bills due to huge increases this year, they’re certainly not going to think about purchasing non-essential items. Money is being spent on essentials, and people are clearly staying in. We’ve gone from the government being driven to help the economy during the pandemic, to now turning a blind eye with the current cost of living crisis where households and small businesses are really starting to struggle. And apparently it’s only going to get worse, so something has to give."

"April and May have waned dramatically with regards to online sales on my Etsy store, which I am closing down due to fees. People just don't have disposable income and are struggling to get the basics. On the plus side, my clothing alterations business, NattySew&So, is ticking over, as people need general alterations as they start back at work. But even the money I make from that is negligible. To generate more sales, I have been writing and creating more content for my online sewing courses, and also trying to forge more B2B relationships. The Government can do a lot more to help the retail sector businesses, e.g., high streets are crying out to be consumed by local business, empty high street shops could be offered, rent and rate free, until businesses get a foothold in the economy."

"April and May have been as dire for online retail as they have been for bricks and mortar shops. What I'm really struggling to understand is how the government see this as a consumer issue, and not a political one. If the average shopper has less in their pocket at the end of each month, that's less they spend, lower sales for businesses, businesses cutting staff and increasing unemployment. The current level of inflation is going to lead us straight into a recession, with mass unemployment and poverty unless something fundamental happens, and soon."

"Growth has been steady since we launched in 2019 but this year has been really tough. Orders seemed to pick up in March so I felt hopeful, but in April we had the lowest orders since opening and May is shaping up to be even worse. As a small business stocking sustainable brands, the profit margins aren't huge so running sales and discounts isn't a solution we can afford long term. A couple of the brands I work with closed in early 2022 and a few others have said that this year will be make or break. It seems that people just aren't spending but I walked through the city centre recently and saw a queue outside a high end designer store and a very packed Primark so at both ends of the spectrum people clearly are buying but not with small businesses like mine. I 100% stand by my ethics and those of the brands I stock so I'm hanging in there and hoping that things will improve."

Our online sales in April were slower than previous months but up on April 21 . We are noticing a decrease in sales so far in May compared to last year (May is our second biggest selling month after November) but have increased traffic to our site so indicating that consumers are looking but not purchasing. We are still feeling confident that we can still have a good year but realistic it might not be as good as the last couple . We are listening to our customers and are adjusting our marketing strategy. Being an online retailer sales in the pandemic were amazing and our business grew enormously.

"The past few months have been extremely hard for my small business. Almost non-existent sales, combined with the increased cost of living and raw materials, mean I'm starting to really worry about my company's future and in turn, my family's future. I'm on my phone from the moment I wake up, until bed, desperately trying to push traffic to my site for sales. Instagram, Tiktok, Facebook, emails. However it's all starting to feel worthless. Food and electric are essentials, ceramic art isn't. I'm sad and annoyed that wealthy and powerful people and companies seem to be more important to the Government than small businesses. We're an absolutely amazing country full of incredibly creative, talented and hard working people and we're being horribly let down."