Energy savvy shoppers snapping up air fryers and heated clothes airers helped push Scottish retailers to their best monthly performance in two decades. Total sales in Scotland increased by 11.3% in December compared to the year before, the Scottish Retail Consortium said on Wednesday, but when adjusted for inflation the year-on-year figure was slashed to just 3.9%.
David Lonsdale, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said after two years of Covid misery, retailers were “finally able to toast sparkling Christmas sales as 2022 finished with a flourish” but warned they were “far from being out of the woods yet” because of the pandemic’s economic legacy and high inflation.
“December’s retail sales shone compared to recent months, and the comparable month the year before, as shoppers returned to spending and took advantage of the first Christmas in three years without pandemic-era curbs or instructions to shun socialising,” he said.
