Serious shoppers from all over the world see the UK as a purveying paradise according to the results of a recent survey.
The study carried out by VisitBritain, the UK’s tourism authority, has produced figures that prove just how important foreign shoppers are to the nation’s economy. The tourism agency reported that around 18 million foreign visitors spent GBP4.5 billion in the UK’s retail outlets last year. That equates to around a quarter of foreign tourists total spend in the UK finding its way into High Street tills.
The analysis of what the money was spent on was perhaps predictable; with more than half of the total spend, GBP2.3 billion, lavished on clothes. Gifts, souvenirs and household goods also featured heavily on buying lists, and accounted for GBP1.6 billion of the spend. However, shopping-oriented tourists only spend around GBP100 more per visit to the UK on average, than their ‘standard tourist’ counterpart, GBP680 compared to GBP580.
Although London benefits massively from tourist shopping, with 81 percent of visitors to the capital choosing to shop, nearly 75 percent of holiday visitors also shopped at other destinations across the UK.
The 18 million shopping tourists were comprised predominantly of 2 million from France, 1.63 million Germans, 1.63 million Americans, 1.3 million Irish and 1.1 million Spanish. However, the number of shoppers arriving from developing countries is also on the increase, especially from Brazil, Russia, and China.
The chief executive at VisitBritain, Sandie Dawe, commented, ‘Shopping in Britain is seen around the world as a positive and welcoming experience, and one of the things VisitBritain promotes to encourage visitors. Our shopping experience is world class, with high quality, desirable British brands enticing international visitors at all times of the year and providing real value for money against our competitors.’
