Even Mother's Day and Easter couldn't coax customers into the shops
Shopper traffic for March fell by 1.6 per cent compared with February, indicating a continued erosion in consumer confidence, according to analyst FootFall.

Two gift-giving events in the month failed to boost traffic. However, comparing shopper traffic with the same time last year showed that there were still 4.2 per cent more people out on the high street last month. This is a wider year-on-year uplift than in February, which gained on the same time last year by 3.6 per cent.

Footfall market analyst Sheelah Turner said: 'There is a persistent tightening of the housing market that is continuing to reduce consumer confidence, making consumers less likely to shop or spend money. Hints of an early spring also provided early opportunities for people to spend some time outdoors, which ultimately helped to draw them away from the high street.'