As Retail Footfall Returns MotoNovo Delivers Record Activity

Despite storms battering the country, it was evident that consumers were determined to embrace the call to learn to live with Covid-19, with retail traffic continuing to recover during February.

Total UK retail footfall reported the highest number of shopper counts seen since pre-pandemic levels in the last week of the month. It is a position that sees the UK leading the top 5 European markets’ footfall recovery. While the retail data is primarily focused on High Street, shopping centres and retail parks, the final week trend reported is precisely what MotoNovo’s activity data registered as the Business’ MD Karl Werner reports; “Our financing volumes in the final week of February were extraordinary, especially in light of traditional trends ahead of the new March 1st plates. The result was that on February 28th, we hit an all-time lending record.”

Assessing the reasons for the increased activity, Karl points to a combination of factors including work completed by MotoNovo to improve acceptance levels, business gains and the launch of the business strategy focused upon an all-new target operating model designed to create better ways of working, but above that Karl’s instinct is that the increased footfall was something more human, as he concludes; “I sense we have seen a real desire for togetherness. People are pleased to be out and about and working to create the new normal that has been referenced widely. We see from the huge uplift in face-to-face contact dealers are pleased to see us and all the feedback from customers reflects similar views. There are certainly plenty of challenges economically and on a global level politically. Against this backdrop, normal personal contact is being valued very highly.”