Total retail sales were up 3% year-on-year in August, which is below the 3 month average growth of 6.9%. LFL sales (excl. temporarily closed stores and online) were up 1.5%. Growth was mixed, not helped by the weather, with footfall still below pre-pandemic levels. However, retail growth rates continue to be higher than pre-pandemic levels, with August’s growth at 8.9% on a 2 year basis. Online sales growth continue to slow, with sales down 4.6% on last year, but online penetration is still high at 38.3% (39.3% in August 2020) versus pre-pandemic (29.5% in August 2019) showing the channel shift. Non-food in-store growth was up to 23.7% (12 month average +21.7%) with LFLs up 16.7%, and on a 2 year basis, sales are marginally below the level seen in August 2019. Shift to more normalised spending continues, with non-food 3 month average total sales up 10.3% (LFLs up 6.8%) with food sales up 2.9% (LFL 1.9%). Bank holiday weekend and back-to-school buzz contributed to the rise in non-food sales. There were healthy sales increases in apparel, but from a much lower base, whilst technology and furniture/appliance categories suffered against very strong comparatives in 2020 Clothing, footwear and accessories continued their strong recovery in August. Formal wear was strong, with weddings coming back and the gradual return to work. Demand for athleisure was also good. Back to school sales were not as strong as expected, mostly due to availability issues and challenges within the supply chain. Health & Beauty continues to perform below pre-pandemic levels, though sales of beauty products performed well, helped by an increase in social activities, and they outperformed health-related products. Furniture sales remain down year-on-year, not helped by supply chain issues, though on a 2 year basis sales were up double-digit in August. Home accessories and home textile sales were also down year-on-year after last year’s strong demand, as focus shifts away from the home. Household appliance sales fell this month, having been up in July. Cooler temperatures in August negatively impacted the seasonable uplift typically seen in refrigeration and fans/air-conditioning at this time of the year. Computing sales were also down for the fourth consecutive month, although they are up on pre-pandemic levels. Demand for TVs and gaming continue to be above pre-pandemic levels.