The following analysis contains data for the devices at Westdaw, S.C Fuller, Calliope, Bernard Marcus, Dorking Light & Shade, Westcott & Williams and The Optical Studio.
- Footfall in January remained consistent throughout the period, as the nation entered a third lockdown at the start of the month.
- Footfall increased across Dorking in Week 2 and Week 3, but any gains were lost in Week 4 and Week 5.
- Non-essential shops, hospitality venues, gyms and hairdressers all closed again during this period, making up 54% of the total units in Dorking.
Weekly footfall profile
- Figure 1 shows how footfall splits across weekdays has changed from January 2020 to 2021.
- The spread of footfall across the week was identical to 2020.
- With the current lockdown extending into February, we anticipate the same pattern in February with Friday and Saturday making up 36% of the weekly footfall totals.
- Calliope had the largest percentage of footfall on a Saturday at 25% of the weekly total.
- Westdaw had the lowest percentage on Saturday at 14%, its weekly peak is on Friday (17% of the total).
Overall footfall volume
- Figure 2 shows the weekly footfall throughout January for active footfall devices.
- The Optical Studio saw footfall rise gradually from Week 2 to Week 4, with the area having a large number of convenience retailers and coffee shops that are able to trade either partially or fully during lockdown.
- The biggest drop in footfall was seen at Calliope due to the closure of other nonessential retailers in the shopping centre.
- The weekly footfall summary shows how footfall remained stable in January, with Dorking moving from Tier 4 into lockdown.
Week-on-week change in footfall
- Figure 4 shows how consistent footfall was in January week on week, with only three devices seeing significant movement.
- Footfall increased at Westdaw in Week 53/Week 1, Week 2 and Week 3, before flattening out in Week 4 and Week 5.
- Calliope saw footfall drop off in Week 4, before picking up in Week 5.
- The Optical Studio saw footfall increase in Week 3 and Week 4, with this likely to have been driven by the drier weather.
- Figure 5 shows the increase in Week 2 and Week 3, with this mainly driven by the rise in footfall across Westdaw.
- Week 4 saw the biggest drop in footfall in January across Dorking, with an 8.1% drop.
