The British Independent Retailers Association has said May's Retail Sales Monitor (RSM) report is of 'real concern' for stores across the UK.

BIRA, which works with over 6,000 independent businesses of all sizes across the UK, said the report shows that sales growth has slowed to its lowest level in six month.

The BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor for May 2023, revealed:

• UK Total retail sales increased by 3.9% in May, against a decline of 1.1% in May 2022. This is below the 3-month average growth of 4.7% and above the 12-month average growth of 3.4%.
• UK Like-for-like retail sales increased by 3.7% in May, against a decline of 1.5% in May 2022. This was below the 3-month average growth of 4.6% and above the 12-month average growth of 3.1%.
• Food sales increased 9.6% on a Total basis and 9.8% on a Like-for-like basis over the three months to May. This is above the 12-month Total average growth of 6.9%. For the month of May, Food was in growth year-on-year.
• Non-Food sales increased 0.7% on a Total basis and 0.5% on a like-for-like basis over the three-months to May. This is above the 12-month Total average growth of 0.5%. For the month of May, Non-Food was in growth year-on-year.
• Over the three months to May, In-store Non-Food sales increased 2.9% on a Total basis and 2.2% on a Like-for-like basis since May 2022. This is below the Total 12-month average growth of 3.7%.
• Online Non-Food sales decreased by 3.0% in May, against a decline of 8.5% in May 2022. This is steeper than the 3-month average decline of 2.8% and shallower than the 12-month decline of 4.0%.
• The proportion of Non-Food items bought online (penetration rate) decreased to 36.3% in May from 37.1% in May 2022.

Bira CEO Andrew Goodacre (pictured above) said: "These latest retail sales figures from BRC/ KPMG are a real concern for independent retailers, especially those in the non-food sectors. Inflation is coming down slower that expected and the threat of even higher interest rates will again damage consumer confidence.

"Discretionary expenditure, the lifeblood of the thousands of business in the non-food sectors, is falling and this will put even more pressure on already hard pressed retailers. Not only do we need to see a reduction in overhead costs for these businesses, we do not need more costly regulations and the government needs to find a way of growing the economy.

"The only good news for shops in these figures is the further decline in the penetration rate of non-food on-line sales. This trend has been there now for many months and shows that consumers prefer the high streets to do their shopping. The small retailer needs the opportunity and support to benefit from this," he added.