With a lack of sunshine in Scotland this summer, has the season been a washout? We spoke to some retailers to find out what has and hasn’t been selling, and discovered that no matter where in the country you are, it’s not been easy.
Joanna Casonato: Nisa Giacopazzi’s
It has been a tough summer compared to last. A lot of that is to do with the weather, and this year T in the Park moved to a new site; we were one of the closest shops to the old site, which made that weekend huge for us. We make our own ice cream so we’re always hopeful for the summer, and to be honest, it has sold well this year despite the weather.
Overall, nothing has been selling particularly well, but you’ve got to get on with it. We ordered in a load of summer toys this year in the hope of parents and children being taken in by them but we haven’t sold many of them either. We just haven’t had the weather for it at all.
Billy Kay: Spar Greenock
It’s not been a great summer, which has been bad for the entire industry. We invest a lot of money in our stores and become reliant on sales that just haven’t materialised this year. I can’t think of a single category where we’ve done really well and that’s the summer coming to a close.
Unlike some of the stores in more tourist towns, I’m confident things will actually start to pick up once all the local schools go back. We’ve got a college nearby as well, so with all the students and school kids hopefully we’ll begin to see an improvement.
David Mitchell: Keystore Broadloan, Renfrew
We normally get a good summer with ice cream, soft drinks and beer selling well. However, this year they haven’t done so well at all, which has been disappointing, to say the least. Ice cream has been the worst selling category, and it’s something we do normally see a bounce in during the summer months – I guess the poor weather just means people haven’t been in the mood for it. Soft drinks, wine and beer have also been poor. Snacks and confectionery have done okay but they always do. We promote confectionery all year round. Unsurprisingly, barbeques and briquettes haven’t sold either.
Omar Nasir: Spar Leven St, Motherwell
Soft drinks and juice have been selling well. It’s a really strong category for us and despite the weather we’ve managed to do okay from them. We have tried to do more promotions to counteract the effects of poor sales due to bad weather, not something you’d want to have to do in summer, but I doubt we’re alone there. Multipack £1 packs of Twirl and Mars and PMPs have been doing well. And even without fantastic weather, I would have expected alcohol to sell better. Schools have gone back now and the good weather has gone so I don’t expect sales to increase.
