Homeware sales remained positive on the high street, while overall sales were up alongside footfall.

According to the latest BDO High Street Sales Tracker, total like-for-like (LFL) sales rose by 4.69% for the week ending 5 November 2023.

Homeware total LFLs grew by +5.28% from a strong base of +9.82% for the same week last year, indicating the category’s second positive result in the last six weeks.

Store sales for homeware were up by +4.99% from a solid base of +17.68% for the same week last year, denoting the category’s third consecutive positive result in the last four weeks and its thirty-fourth for 2023.

Total in-store LFL sales grew by +3.19% from a good base of +3.57% for the same week last year. Total non-store LFL sales rose by +4.88% from a moderate base of +1.11% for the same week last year.

Commenting on the results, BDO said: “Strong results for both in-store and non-store sales helped lift total LFL sales in a week that opened with Halloween on Tuesday and closed with the Bonfire Night weekend, marking the third successive positive outcome after three straight weeks of negative results.

“The weather during this week was predominantly wet and windy as heavy rain, gusts and windstorms associated with Storm Ciarán swept across the country. The same week last year saw heavy rain and strong winds with thunderstorms in parts of the UK.”

Overall footfall went up by +2.2% compared to the corresponding week last year. Shopping centres saw the highest footfall growth this week, recording an increase of +3.7%, followed by retail parks with +2.9%, while high streets saw footfall improve moderately by +1.1%.