A record Christmas for car washes gave fuel stations a bumper end to the year
Retail Ireland has urged shops not to overdose on Black Friday sales.
FUEL STATIONS ENDED 2017 on a high thanks to increasing prices at the pumps, a bump in coffee and alcohol purchases – and record car wash sales in the week before Christmas.
According to Ibec group Retail Ireland’s latest quarterly business monitor, the overall value of sales at filling stations were up 5.4% in the three months to December compared to the same period in 2016, while sales volumes increased 2%.
Changing consumer behaviour continued to hurt newspaper, magazine and tobacco sales, but fuel stations recorded a strong finish to 2017 thanks to “record car wash sales in the week prior to Christmas, with sales over double that of the same week in 2016″.
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Retail Ireland’s business monitor also found that the early flu season helped boost business at pharmacies.
“A strong start to the cough and cold season meant healthcare, coupled with a healthy performance in core toiletries, drove pharmacy sales in the last quarter of 2017,” it said in the report.
Total sales values in pharmacies increased by 6.4% compared to the same three-month period in 2016, with volumes up 8.1%.
“Beauty-related categories performed well in November but slowed in December, as volumes fell 1.0% compared to the previous month. This demonstrates a further increase in the importance of Black Friday in the health and beauty market,” Retail Ireland said.
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Sales ‘addiction’
The lobby group’s director, Thomas Burke, said “the jury remains out” on what long-term impact the Black Friday is having on business and urged retailers to be cautious about the November sales bonanza as it becomes an increasingly important fixture in the shopping calendar.
“Critics of such promotional events suggest this activity merely brings forward purchasing decisions at the expense of margin,” he said.
“Advocates say it launches the Christmas shopping season and helps to promote additional spend over the elongated season. The jury remains out … but it is clearly influencing consumer spending patterns.”
Burke warned Retail Ireland members that Black Friday may be having a negative impact on “the once seminal January sales”.
“Deep discounting has become an addiction for Irish retail and like any addiction, ability to manage it will be crucial for future prospects. An over indulgence could be fatal,” he said.
Each retail category monitored by Retail Ireland reported an increase in both the value and volume of sales for the month of December with the exception of speciality food and drink stores.
Butchers, fish mongers, bakeries and other such shops reported a near-2% decrease in the value of sales in the month of December and a 0.1% decline in volume.
