UK shopping centres defy Brexit gloom as wet weather helps lift June footfall

Britons taking cover during one of the wettest Junes in years helped shopping centres and retail parks across the country counteract the fallout from the Brexit vote and record rising footfall last month.

Traffic to shopping centres rose by 0.5% while retail parks saw 1.4% more visitors in June compared to the previous month, according to the British Council of Shopping Centres.

The growth comes despite an immediate drop-off in footfall in the aftermath of the European Union referendum. Footfall slumped by as much as 6.9% when news of the leave vote emerged on June 24.

Edward Cooke, acting chief executive for the BCSC, said: “June 2016 will go down as one of the wettest for years and these latest figures appear to indicate consumers have headed for cover in retail destinations during the exceptionally wet weather.

“The fact that visitor numbers fell across town centres, shopping centres and retail parks over the referendum weekend is perhaps unsurprising as the population was no doubt preoccupied with the history of the unfolding news.”