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North Yorkshire cycle hub up for top tourism award

22 Mar 2024

Rob Brown, co-director of Dalby Forest Cycle Hub, a not-for-profit hire scheme has been nominated for the Tourism Superstar 2024 award, run by VisitEngland.
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Independent retail bodies welcome new report aimed at tackling retail crime.

21 Mar 2024

ACS (The Association of Convenience Stores) and the Federation of Independent Retailers (The Fed) have both welcomed a new report published by the Association of Police and Crime... Read more…

Indie retailers outperformed supermarkets in sales of organic food, wellness and beauty products in 2023.

21 Mar 2024

As reported by Healthstores UK, new data contained in the 2024 Soil Association Organic Market report shows that independent retailers delivered an impressive 10% growth in 2023, with... Read more…

Cheltenham beer shop and bar wins top UK award.

21 Mar 2024

An independent bottle shop and bar in Cheltenham has been named as the UK's Independent Beer and Wine Retailer of the Year 2024 at the Drinks Retailing Awards. 
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Welsh Government Announce £20m Future Proofing Fund for Retail Businesses in Wales

21 Mar 2024

A number of organisations, including Bira (the British Independent Retailers’ Association), other trade associations, BIDs and unions have met with officials from the Welsh Government to... Read more…

High Street Faces 'Unprecedented Challenges' says Trade Association

21 Mar 2024

The British Independent Retailers’ Association (Bira) has reacted to data released by PwC and the Local Data Company exploring the state of the UK retail landscape.
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Greeting Card Association expresses concern on new evidence Royal Mail prioritising parcel deliveries over letters.

6 Mar 2024

The Greeting Card Association has reacted to a BBC Panorama programme lifting the lid on Royal Mail management prioritising parcel delivery over letters, which it says are in contradiction of... Read more…

Kate Bush named as Record Store Day ambassador.

4 Mar 2024

Pop star Kate Bush has been announced as an ambassador for this year's Record Store Day, on 20 April.
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Shortlist for Independent Bookshop of the Year 2024 revealed.

4 Mar 2024

The British Book Awards has announced its shortlist for Independent Bookshop of the Year. 
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Local Bike Shop Day 2024 confirmed for Saturday May 4th.

4 Mar 2024

The ACT is happy to confirm the date for Local Bike Shop Day 2024 as Saturday 4 May, the weekend of the early May Bank Holiday.
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Shoppers more likely to shop local if a loyalty scheme is on offer

Posted on in Business News, Cycles News, Creative News, Outdoor News

New research from Groupon reveals the most pressing issues facing local retailers.

One of the most revealing statistics is that four in ten (40%) independent retailers say they don't have a dedicated website.

The research, which questioned 2,010 shoppers and 1,000 local business decision makers nationwide, revealed that independent retailers' biggest challenges are competing with big chain retailers (40%), retaining local customers (38%), and competing with online/app/mobile commerce (35%). Despite these challenges retailers are doing little to try and overcome these challenges, with three fifths (57%) of all independent retailers saying they've never had a loyalty scheme and don't plan to implement one; and over a quarter (26%) admit they've no strategy in place for attracting new customers.

Currently, shoppers are still spending significantly more money at large chains rather than local stores on average each week - £42.70 vs. £10.60 respectively. But all is not lost as consumers say they do want to support local businesses, with almost half (47%) saying it's important for them to shop locally. Consumers in Northern Ireland (65%) and Yorkshire and Humberside (58%) are the keenest to do so.

"Over a third of shoppers say they would be more likely to shop local if a loyalty scheme was on offer "

Overall, shoppers say they are passionate about their local independent businesses because they like their proximity to their home (43%), the way they make their community unique (74%) and want to improve their local economy (47%). Over a third (41%) of shoppers say they would be more likely to shop local if a loyalty scheme was on offer, but that currently many local businesses don't provide them (14%) or promotional discounts (18%).

Jon Wilson, MD at Groupon UK, says: "Over three quarters of Brits support their local businesses as it makes their community unique; and in an age of lookalike high streets, it's more important than ever for the small businesses up and down the country to capitalise on this. In light of the potential post-Brexit economic shift; it's heartening to know that British shoppers have a firm desire to support local businesses."

"Our research suggests that while some local businesses are proactively exploring how to capitalise on these opportunities, an alarmingly large proportion aren't."

 

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