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Retail sales volumes fell by 2.7% in May, according to the latest retail sales figures from the ONS, marking the sharpest monthly decline since December 2023.
The fall followed a revised 1.3% rise in April and was driven largely by reduced spending in food stores and weaker sales of clothing and household goods.
Despite the monthly drop, sales volumes rose by 0.8% in the three months to May compared with the previous three-month period, and by 1.7% against the same three months last year.
Additionally, sales declined across all major sectors. Food store sales volumes fell by 5.0% in May – the largest drop since May 2021 – following growth of 4.7% in April. Retailers cited inflation, changing customer behaviour, and lower demand for alcohol and tobacco as key factors.
Non-food store sales, which include department, clothing and household goods outlets, also decreased by 1.4%, with businesses citing reduced footfall and earlier-than-usual completion of home improvement projects following April’s warm weather.
Furthermore, online spending fell by 1.0% over the month and by 2.5% compared with May 2024. However, online sales accounted for a larger share of total retail spending, rising from 26.8% in April to 27.2% in May.
Total spending, which includes both in-store and online sales, also fell by 2.4% in May.
The ONS revealed that retail volumes remain 2.7% below pre-pandemic levels recorded in February 2020 and have now dropped to their lowest point since December 2024.
Kris Hamer, director of Insight at the British Retail Consortium (BRC), said: “May sales saw the weakest growth in 2025 as many consumers hold back on spending on retail, and opt to use their spare cash on experiences and summer holidays. Some non-food categories such as fashion and footwear had a particularly poor month, and beauty sales also continued to come down after a consistently strong period of growth last year.
“Meanwhile, some electricals sold well, particularly gaming which was largely due to the very strong pre-sales of the new Nintendo.This weak consumer demand comes at a particularly bad time as retailers are having to grapple with billions of pounds of extra costs this year following the chancellor’s Budget last October.”
He added: “The future of business rates reforms is still unclear, but it is vital that it does not result in any shop paying more. Otherwise many retailers could be forced to shut down stores, which will impact jobs and local communities, and ultimately the UK’s economic growth.”
