New IBISWorld research indicates frugal consumers and online shopping have reduced foot traffic in shopping centres across Australia, leading centre operators to respond by offering an even greater range of shopping and services to lure patrons back.

‘Digital platforms that enhance in-store customer shopping experiences and eliminate the divide between bricks-and-mortar and online operations are also part of retailers’ attempts to increase footfall,’ said Ms Kim Do, IBISWorld Senior Industry Analyst.

IBISWorld research also indicates the crucial Christmas shopping period will be characterised by more bargain hunters, heavy discounting and fierce competition from online retailers.

‘An estimated 10.8% of all retail spending occurs in December in the lead up to Christmas Day. This year, festive shopping is expected to remain subdued with annual retail revenue increasing by just 1.9% over the year to December 2017. This means the average Australian will spend about $420 on Christmas gifts this year,’ said Ms Do.

‘Trading conditions are forecast to remain challenging across the range of bricks-and-mortar retailing and service industries commonly found in Australian shopping centres, with annualised growth of between 1.0% and 2.2% over the five years through 2022-23,’ added Ms Do. ‘Online shopping, however, is anticipated to enjoy annualised revenue growth of 9.4% over the same period.’

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