CAUTIOUS optimist is name of the game at the Scottish Retail Consortium following the group’s latest retail sales figures in partnership with KPMG.
Figures for the four weeks to 26 August found Scottish sales increased by 1.9% on a like-for-like basis compared to August 2016 when sales had decreased by 1.9%, with total food sales growth shooting up to 4.1% on last August, capping off the best 12 month period of growth for the category since June 2014.
Ewan MacDonald-Russell, head of policy and external affairs at the SRC, commented: “On the surface there is some good news in August’s figures. Real-term sales rose by 1.3%, with customers taking advantage of early Autumn ranges.
“However it’s important to note both food and non-food are being compared to a very poor August in 2016.”
