Millions of shoppers have descended on Britain’s high streets today as ‘Super Saturday’ looks to smash spending records.
One in three of the nation’s adults is expected to splurge with experts saying as much as £1.7billion could be splashed out on last minute Christmas presents.
Staff at Bluewater shopping centre in Kent were braced for record footfalls with 110,000 bargain hunters expected through the doors.
A further 100,000 are expected at Lakeside in Essex.
Millions of eager Christmas shoppers descended on the country’s high streets and malls today as ‘Super Saturday’ looks to smash spending records. Leeds city centre was packed with last minute bargain hunters
One in three of the nation’s adults is expected to splurge with experts saying as much as £1.7billion could be splashed out on last minute Christmas presents. In Newcastle, thousands took to Northumberland Street to pick up gifts
The sales were well underway in Birmingham. Experts said at least 220,000 shoppers were expected to come through the city’s Bullring shopping centre on Saturday alone
There was last minute bargains to be had on London’s famous Oxford Street and these shoppers were pictured with bags from designer store Selfridges. A record amount of money is expected to be spent on ‘Super Saturday’
Thousands of shoppers took to London’s Oxford Street on Saturday in the hunt for cheap deals two days before Christmas. Many stores have already launched their sales
One in three of the nation’s adults is expected to splurge with experts saying as much as £1.7billion could be splashed out on last minute Christmas presents
These shoppers were spotted weighed down with shopping bags on Northumberland Street, Newcastle’s main shopping area. Millions have been packing in some last minute shopping before Christmas
Millions of shoppers have descended on Britain’s high streets today as ‘Super Saturday’ looks to smash spending records. This bargain hunter was snapped on Oxford Street, London
Busy: Christmas shoppers were pictured in central London as the last minute rush got under way. A record number of money is expected to be spent on ‘Super Saturday’
Elsewhere, St David’s, Cardiff, was due 250,000 shoppers, with 220,000 at Birmingham´s Bullring, 180,000 at Manchester’s Trafford Centre and 90,000 at Bristol’s Cabot Circus.
Shoppers laden with bags were pictured in Leeds, Birmingham, Newcastle and London as they hunted for some last minute bargains.
Scottish malls were due approaching 100,000 at the Braehead Centre, near Glasgow, 80,000 at Glasgow’s Silverburn and 70,000 at Aberdeen’s Union Square.
Experts even predict today will see more shoppers than Boxing Day, with analyst Springboard saying: ‘December 23 generates the largest footfall in the year.’
Super Saturday could be Britain’s busiest ever shopping day before December 25, experts said, with 14 million shoppers expected on high streets and shopping centres.
They are expected to spend £1.45bn, while the 3.4 million online bargain hunters could spend an additional £220million.
The splurge would cap a record £7billion spree for the last shopping week before December 25, spending trend data from the Centre for Retail Research showed, with around £5.5bn spent in stores this week and another £1.5bn online.
The mega spree is due to a late rush after shopper totals were down 10 per cent on last year over the first three weeks of December.
Super Saturday could be Britain’s busiest ever shopping day before December 25, experts said, with 14 million shoppers expected on high streets and shopping centres
Families enjoyed the unseasonably mild weather and made the most of the pleasant conditions as they shopped in Birmingham. Around £7bn is expected to have been spent online and in store in the UK in the last week
Shop ’til you drop: One woman was pictured taking a rest from lugging her bags around as she stopped for a breather on London’s Oxford Street
There were bargains to be had across the country with High Street giants slashing their prices in a bid to entice shoppers into spending some cash. These shoppers were pictured in Newcastle city centre today
Newcastle city centre was packed on Super Saturday as shoppers scrambled to make the most of the sales two days before Christmas. A record amount of money is expected to be spent
These shoppers appeared to have done their bit to add to the total spent by Christmas bargain hunters on ‘Super Saturday’. They were laden with bags from designer store Selfridges and Louis Vuitton
Festive feeling: The UK is enjoying unseasonably mild weather this Christmas and shoppers descended on Regents Street in London to make the most of it
Many high street giants – including Top Shop – have already started their Christmas sales. These bargain hunters were pictured on London’s Oxford Street
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the Centre for Retail Research, said: ‘This may well be the busiest ever week before Christmas in terms of shopper numbers, and the biggest spending week before Christmas ever.
‘Saturday has the highest ever number of shoppers before Christmas forecast, as it falls right before Christmas Eve.
‘There is a trend of spending late. And prices are falling so shoppers can expect bargains.’
Mintel director of retail research Richard Perks said: ‘More and more shoppers are leaving it until the last minute.’
Gordon McKinnon, operations director for intu – one of Britain’s biggest shopping centre owners with 14 malls including Manchester’s Trafford Centre, Gateshead’s Metrocentre, Essex’s Lakeside and Braehead, near Glasgow – said: ‘Saturday is a big one. Well over a million people will have visited our centres.’
Tired out: Shoppers were pictured taken the weight off their feet and surrounded by packed shopping bags on Oxford Street in London on Saturday
Thousands of shoppers were snapped on Oxford Street today as millions of bargain hunters hit the high street across the UK. Billions of pounds are expected to be spent in the next few days
Last minute shoppers took to the streets of Birmingham as they hunted for some bargains just two days before Christmas
Millions decided against doing their last minute Christmas shopping online and took the traditional route of hitting the high streets. These shoppers were pictured in Birmingham
Shoppers – like these pictured on Oxford Street – are expected to spend £1.45bn, while the 3.4 million online bargain hunters could spend an additional £220million
Leaving it ’til the last minute: There are only two days before Christmas and millions of people across the UK were squeezing in some last minute shoppers. Oxford Street was packed with bargain hunters on Saturday
Sunday – Christmas Eve – will see a lull in shoppers on the streets and cash spent as families settle down to spend the day together.
But the lull will be short lived – Christmas day could see 10.9 million eager shoppers swooping on discounts going live on December 5, with analysts saying a total of £895million could be spent.
That is £25million more than the total expected to be spent online on Boxing Day.
But on the streets Boxing Day will retain its crown as the king of Britain’s shopping days with a third of the UK’s population expected to spend.
Around 22.8 million Brits are set to spend a record £4.3 billion this Boxing Day – a 12% rise on 2016.
This is a whopping 65% more than the amount spent on Black Friday this year, when an estimated £2.6 billion was splurged by shoppers hunting for pre-Christmas deals.
Bargain hunters were not only on the look out for clothes and electrical goods. The traditional pre-Christmas meat auction sale at Smithfield market in the city of London attracted hundreds of shoppers
In chaotic scenes, crowds of meat lovers were pictured fighting to get their hands on cheap food at Smithfield Market today
Punters waved bank notes at a butcher in central London today as the traditional pre-market meat auction kicked off. Prime cuts of meat were sold off at knock-down prices
Show us your money: Meat lovers flashed the cash at today’s meat auction with ten, twenty and even fifty pound notes waved in the air as shoppers tried to get the best deal on their Christmas meat
A butcher held up a chunk of meat at the traditional pre-Christmas meat auction sale at Smithfield market. Festive shoppers were in the hunt for some cheap meat for their festive feasts
One young punter held up to £10 notes as he looked to get in on the action at Saturday’s traditional pre-Christmas meat auction sale in central London