Easter Weekend Drives Footfall

Easter weekend is one of the busiest weekends of all within the shopping centre and retail sector, it is expected to maximise sales, drive footfall and dwell time for retailers, F&B and leisure operators. It has been reported that shoppers are expected to spend £395m on Easter eggs this year – a 5.3% increase from last year, demonstrating the high footfall on the way this weekend!

In-store and online, sales are set to rise this Easter Weekend, unless of course the dreaded beast of the east returns. Springboard expects that footfall could see an increase of 2.4% compared to Easter 2017. However, this could fall back to as much as -15% if the ‘Beast from the East’ weather conditions seen in February and March reappear!

After Christmas, Easter is certainly the most important trading period for shopping centres and retail stores, with stores maximising on the number of people off work, increasing the footfall! Parents are also feeling under pressure to ensure children are entertained throughout the Easter break – what better way than to visit their local scheme where they can browse the shops, have a bite to eat and enjoy the leisure offering all under one roof!

There are numerous campaigns across the shopping centre arena that will maximise sales and drive footfall for Easter this year. Easter offers a fantastic opportunity to entice a wider audience to a centre that may be slightly further away than their local!

Here are some events taking place this weekend:

There are numerous events going on at intu Trafford Centre with a range of tenants getting involved. John Lewis is holding a whole host of events including Easter card making, live music, story time and a fashion show to name a few. Selfridges is hosting an Easter Eggstravaganza including games, breakfast and an Easter Egg Hunt. On the F&B side, many restaurants are supporting the centre’s Easter event by presenting Easter menus with some offering kids eat free!

Westfield Stratford City has also got events taking place throughout the Easter period. They are offering the opportunity to meet Peter Rabbit – a great way to promote the cinema offering! The Disney store is holding an Easter Egg Hunt, Easter Craft workshop activities will be on offer at the centre’s kids club and Foyles is holding an activity afternoon, including Easter egg decorating and some Easter themed story readings.

Bluewater has a wide range of events throughout the scheme. They have a Lindt Gold Bunny event, encouraging children to explore the warren and see how many times they can count the Lindt Bunny to receive chocolate prizes. Tapas Revolution has added to their desert menu to welcome ‘Easter Churros’ and Godiva has created a wide range of samples to give out for their POP mini-Easter eggs range. Cocoba Chocolate Café is giving away a giant Easter Egg in their annual Easter Egg Hunt, plus over 20 other prizes including a Bluewater gift card.

There will be many more events taking place than touched on above, Easter weekend always brings a great atmosphere to Shopping Centres, increases dwell time and lifts sales. I am looking forward to enjoying the Easter experience this weekend!