28 Feb 2013
Britain ranks highly as shopping destination
BY Jessica Tasman-Jones
Britain has been revealed as a sought after destination for international shoppers, with figures showing last year’s 18m visitors spent £4.5bn on retail therapy during their stay.
The majority of the shopping spend was on clothes with £2.3bn spent on fashion, while souvenirs, gifts and household goods accounted for around £1.6bn.
Australians were the most likely to go shopping during their visit, while the biggest spenders were from the Gulf States (£442 per head), Nigeria (£432) and China ($405).
Nearly 70 per cent of female visitors and 50 per cent of males made sure they included shopping on their itinerary during a trip to the UK.
Britain ranked favourably against France and on par with Italy for value for money.
Chief executive of VisitBritain Sandie Dawe said: “It’s not just purchasing designer goods at Harrods, or rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous on Chelsea’s King’s Road that lure visitors to the UK – a huge number also make the trip to seek out bargains.”
A survey of respondents from 19 country revealed a fifth rated shopping at Harrods as one of their top three ‘only in Britain’ dream holiday activities.
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