British Independent Retailers Association (Bira) has acknowledged the good news coming from Office of National Statistics, which reports a 4% year on year rise in retail sales for the month of February.
Andrew Goodacre, Bira ceo comments: “The positive results for retail sales growth in February are encouraging and will certainly be a help to many struggling retailers. The surprising warmer weather will have got people in the buying mood.”
Continuing, Andrew highlights the wider perspective: “However, it is still an incredibly difficult market and margins continue to be under pressure. Retailers still need help and these results shouldn’t be a distraction from the issues they face on a daily basis, in particular the ever increasing costs and paperwork.”
He emphasises: “Local authorities can support their local independent retail businesses by automatically implementing the forthcoming reduction in rates for those with a rateable value of £51,000 or below for example.”
Top: Bira’s Andrew Goodacre.
