The following analysis contains data for the devices at Barnard Marcus, S.C. Fuller, The Optical Studio and Westcott & Williams.
- Total footfall in February 2022 across these four devices increased by 95.7% from the previous month following the further removal of coronavirus restrictions, with the legal requirement to self-isolate after testing positive for COVID-19 being withdrawn from Thursday, 24 February.
- This also represented a 118.7% year-on-year increase in footfall from February 2021 which roughly mirrored a national year-on-year rise of 126.4% in overall footfall for the week 21-27 February (Source: BDO), with the equivalent month last year falling within the third national lockdown.
- The Artisan Market – usually scheduled for the first Sunday of the month – did not take place in February.
- Average daily footfall is likely to increase further during the coming months following the government’s exit strategy from coronavirus restrictions, with workers returning more regularly to the office and the prospect of warmer weather. However, the increased cost of living due to rising energy prices (further heightened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine during the past month) and inflation on a wider scale may soon hit the spending habits of high street shoppers.
Weekly Footfall Profile
- Figure 1 shows how weekly footfall has compared year-on-year for the month of February.
- The proportion of footfall in February was 2.0% higher on Fridays and 3.3% up on Saturdays compared to the equivalent month last year.
- Conversely, the proportion of footfall on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays were 1.4%, 2.0% and 2.5% lower respectively than in February 2021, demonstrating a shift to shopping more towards the latter end of the week. 15% 15% 15% 16% 14% 16% 10% 15% 13% 13% 13% 16% 19% 10% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% 20% Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Percentage of passers-by Percentage of weekly footfall across days of the week 2021 2022 Data and analysis by the Local Data Company www.localdatacompany.com
- As usual, Sunday resulted in the lowest percentage footfall of any day – the Artisan Market did not take place in February and therefore failed to provide its usual boost to visitor numbers.
Overall Footfall Volume
- Figure 2 shows the weekly footfall throughout February 2022 across the four active footfall devices.
- The device at The Optical Studio, located in the prime position of the High Street, witnessed by far the largest footfall levels of the four active devices for all weeks during February, increasing significantly from Week 5 to Week 6.
- The other three devices registered roughly the same levels of footfall at under 10,000 passers-by each week. • While the devices at Barnard Marcus, S.C. Fuller and Westcott & Williams registered slightly lower footfall in February compared to the previous month, footfall jumped by 250.8% at The Optical Studio.
- Figure 3 shows the weekly footfall summary and how total footfall has trended in February 2022.
- The first week of February (Week 5) witnessed the lowest total footfall across all active devices (63,601 passers-by), but then increased to in excess of 90,000 for each of the three subsequent weeks.
- Total combined footfall reached a peak of 98,117 during Week 8 as the government removed the requirement to self-isolate if testing positive for COVID-19 on the Thursday of that week.
Week on Week Change in Footfall
- Figure 4 shows the percentage change in footfall week-on-week during February 2022 for each individual device.
- The device located at The Optical Studio saw a 93% increase in Week 6 (7-13 February) compared to the previous week
- Other devices were much more consistent, although Barnard Marcus did witness a 22% drop in footfall during the same week which was then immediately followed by a 16% increase. 63,601 96,967 92,291 98,117 0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 120,000 Week 5 2022 Week 6 2022 Week 7 2022 Week 8 2022 Number of passers-by Weekly Summary -40% -20% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Week 5 2022 Week 6 2022 Week 7 2022 Week 8 2022 Percentage Change Week-on-week percentage change by device Barnard Marcus – 238 High Street, Dorking, RH4 1QR S.C. Fuller – 28-30 South Street, Dorking, RH4 2HQ The Optical Studio – 62 High Street, Dorking, RH4 1BE Westcott & Williams – 41 West Street, Dorking, RH4 1BU Data and analysis by the Local Data Company www.localdatacompany.com
- Figure 5 shows the week-on-week change in total footfall across all three devices in Dorking during February.
- There was a combined 52.5% increase in footfall during Week 6 (7-13 February) as the easing of coronavirus restrictions continued.
- The subsequent week witnessed a 4.8% drop in footfall which was more than cancelled out by a 6.3% rise the following week.
