Shopify and NWEC numbers show strong Black Friday for London (#1683773)

The deluge of Black Friday data is continuing and it’s interesting that international numbers from Shopify show that London was in the top three selling cities globally (with Manchester and Birmingham also making up the UK-specific top three).

That news comes as the New West End Company — the body that represents hundreds of businesses operating in London’s key West End neighbourhood — said fofootfall across the West End increased by 11% this Black Friday and 35% this Cyber Monday compared to 2023.

This was driven by an 11% rise in visitors over the entire sales weekend, compared to last year.

NWEC CEO Dee Corsi said Black Friday “remains a busy trading day for retailers in the West End and a significant draw for visitors to the district… This comes off the back of a positive October for both domestic and international spending in the district, underlining the role that flagship retail and leisure destinations like the West End can play in driving growth.”

Clearly tourists would have made up a big chunk of West End shoppers, but the lack of tax-free shopping perks for foreign visitors  means there may have been fewer tourists than if the perk still existed. 

Anecdotal evidence from the FashionNetwork.com team in London’s West End — and in designer discount-focused Bicester Village — suggests that a lot of shoppers were from Britain itself.

Looking again at the Shopify figures, it announced a record-breaking $11.5 billion in sales being made from independent businesses worldwide. At its peak, merchants on Shopify saw sales of $4.6 million per minute.

It saw 36% growth in UK consumers this Black Friday weekend compared to 2023 and the average cart price in the UK was £77.53. The UK’s top 5 product categories by orders were  T-shirts at number one, followed by activewear trousers, hoodies, vitamins & supplements, and skincare.

The company said consumers were “approaching this holiday shopping season with intentionality. They’re seeking out good deals from their favourite brands, splitting their time between online and in-store and spending more time shopping on social media”.

It added that “Black Friday weekend is the biggest shopping event of the year for Shopify merchants like Astrid & Miyu, Gymshark and P Louise cosmetics. It’s also a moment that showcases the power and impact British businesses have around the globe. This year, 18% of sales were cross-border orders, underlining the strength of UK export for Shopify merchants”.

While London was in the top three of cities with the most enthusiastic shoppers, it wasn’t at number one. In fact, the top two cities were LA and New York, with the US, UK and Australia among the top-selling countries worldwide.