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Christmas crunch on 'nervous' high street

29.11.07 Graeme Neill

High street retailers have unveiled the latest wave of Christmas promotions as the seasonal shopping period reaches crunch time. The step-up in activity comes as vicious discounting points towards one of the cheapest Christmases on record. The average selling price of titles through Nielsen BookScan last week fell to £8.03, down 8p on 2006.

Borders last week stepped up its Christmas offer with a half-price hardback promotion. The chain, which has eschewed heavy discounting so far this autumn, launched a week-long offer pushing titles by Russell Brand, Jamie Oliver and Jeremy Clarkson at 50% off.

Waterstone's, meanwhile, has just ended a two-week, half-price push on cookery books, switching its half-price offer to biographies. The chain is understood to have reduced both the number of discounted titles and the overall value of its discounts compared to last year.

W H Smith switched to buy-one-get-one-half-price on paperbacks from yesterday (29th November) and has moved frontlist hardbacks, which have typically been running at half price, to money-off offers.

The news comes as a new survey underlines the importance of the high street in general consumer spending. Research by the British Shops & Stores Association found that 36% of consumer spending was on the high street, the largest share of the general market. The internet accounted for just 6% of shopping.

Unveiling the BSSA survey earlier this week, c.e.o. John Dean said books "should hold up well". He added that while there is a "great deal of nervousness" about Christmas, he expects consumer fears to hit spending in the New Year. "By the time people start getting credit card bills, they will have also had four months of higher mortgage costs and will generally be tightening their belts."

Retail Graeme Neill Christmas

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