Boxing Day Shoppers To Spend £3.74bn On Sales

Stores were opening as early as 6am today as an estimated 22 million people scour the high streets and websites for deals.

Many major retailers began their sales online on Christmas Eve, although the high street is still hoping for a record turnover this Boxing Day.

Retailers in London's West End are hoping to take more than £100m in sales over the next three days.

Shoppers are predicted to spend a total of £3.74bn in the Boxing Day sales, up 6% on last year, according to figures from VoucherCodes.co.uk and the Centre for Retail Research.

It is expected that 78% of Boxing Day transactions will take place in stores, although online sales will also be strong.

Online shopping is expected to account for £856m in sales - up 22% on last year's £699m, according to Experian and IMRG.

Among the big discounters are department stores Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty and House of Fraser, while Marks & Spencer and Next have both launched price cuts of up to 50%.

Britons have already spent more than £700m on Christmas Day.

Last Saturday an estimated £1.1bn was spent on so-called "Panic Saturday".

Claire Davenport, the managing director of VoucherCodes, said: "While pre-Christmas sale dates have soared in popularity over the last couple of years, it seems they are yet to take over our more traditional savings days.

She said that "many retailers (are) choosing to go all out on Boxing Day, running deals as early as Christmas Day right through to the start of the New Year".

Ms Davenport added: "Judging from our research, it looks as though consumer appetite to snap up deals is here to stay, both on the high street and online."

Steve Richardson, UK regional director at analysts FootFall, said: "With Boxing Day falling on a Saturday, this means for most an extended Christmas break with the extra bank holiday on Monday.

"We anticipate the extra day will motivate shoppers to use this additional day off to seek out further bargains, spend Christmas vouchers and even return or exchange unwanted Christmas gifts, causing shopper traffic to rise 3% year-on-year on Boxing Day."

But while shoppers are scrambling for cut-price deals, the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) issued a plea for shop staff to be respected, "particularly during the Boxing Day sales when bargain hunting can turn into a frenzy".

USDAW general secretary John Hannett said: "Incidents of violence, threats and abuse against shop workers are already worryingly high, so my message to shoppers is clear: enjoy your bargain hunting, keep your cool and respect shop workers."