Positive year for Shrewsbury, despite challenging economic conditions
Figures show that sales in Shrewsbury increased in 2024 - despite business leaders warning that economic conditions remain “challenging”.
Shrewsbury BID said overall sales for 2024 were up by 0.5% on the previous year, compared to the GB benchmark which showed a decrease of 3.9%.
Seb Slater, Executive Director of Shrewsbury BID, said: “There is no doubt that trading conditions are challenging but there is plenty of reason for optimism, and we are particularly encouraged to see a number of prominent town centre units now under offer, as well as a range of new businesses opening in recent months.
“We have an exciting range of activities planned to drive footfall and spend throughout 2025, and we are looking forward to the year ahead.”
Pollyanna Williams, of Snoop on Wyle Cop, said December was an excellent month which saw her busiest ever day of trading in the run-up to Christmas.
She said: “December inside Snoop was just wonderful and despite the wash-out start to the month from flooding and rain, we more than doubled our November takings.
“Being our second Christmas, we were able to really see an increase in returning customers - we even surpassed our best-ever day, on a Monday of all days! I couldn’t have asked for a better end to a wonderful year on Wyle Cop.”
Darren Tomkins, owner of Gindifferent in the Market Hall, said 2024 had been a tough year, with the increased cost of living for people adding to the difficult trading conditions.
“Spending patterns changed as the year went on, with people tending to spend more on personal gifts rather than things like gift vouchers,” he said.
“We were pleased with the immediate run-up to Christmas, but November and December were generally quite difficult due to the horrendous weather which discouraged people from visiting town.
“That being said, individual spend was up so although customer numbers were sometimes down, they were spending more, and we are optimistic about the year ahead.”
Another town centre business, Oberon, reported strong December sales, with owner Stacey Hill saying customers appreciated the experience of visiting independent shops which offered something different.
She said: “We had a great response this peak period, we were up on last year’s figures which is fantastic. Some trends we noticed were people being more willing to spend on treats for themselves and they were being a lot more thoughtful with their gift buying.
“We also felt people were making an effort to shop in independents and support local traders. We think people are looking for a more nostalgic and sentimental shopping experience, which independents like ours can offer.”
