How Will The Retail Sales Rise Impact UK E-Commerce Startups?

Retail sales volumes in Great Britain went up by 1.2% during April, according to the Office for National Statistics on 23 May 2025. The increase followed a small 0.1% gain in March and marks a fourth monthly advance.

Compared with February 2020, the quantity bought now stands 0.3% higher, reaching its strongest position since July 2022. The ONS also recorded a 5% jump when set against April 2024, underlining buyers’ willingness to keep spending despite economic uncertainty.

Looking over three months, volumes moved up 1.8% from the period ending January 2025, the quickest three-month improvement since July 2021.

 

How Is The High Street Managing?

 

April brought growth in almost every bricks-and-mortar category. Department stores and household goods outlets both booked gains, helped by blue skies and warmer days that drew shoppers outdoors.

Clothing shops told a different story. Their volumes dipped, and the broader “other non-food” group also slipped after a lively March. Even so, the overall non-food decline was held to 0.7%.

Supermarkets and convenience chains continued to anchor town centres, while specialist food retailers such as butchers and bakers enjoyed busier counters.

 

Is Food The Best Performer?

 

Food stores recorded the biggest single rise of the month of 3.9%. Retailers gave credit to sunny weekends, which encouraged picnics, barbecues and early holiday gatherings.

The Met Office confirmed April was the UK’s third warmest on record and far drier than average, a backdrop that clearly helped grocers shift extra produce.

Alcohol and tobacco outlets also benefited, echoing the trend seen across larger supermarkets. The combined effect put food firmly at the heart of April’s spending story.

 

 

How Is Online Retail Going?

 

Online spending values went down 0.3% after 2 months of progress. Fashion websites and department store platforms held pretty steady, yet “other non-food” e-tailers saw a 5.9% drop. Even with that fall, cash spent on the category still ran 6.1% above April 2024, showing that digital demand remains sticky. Volumes for the wider non-store group, covering pure play retailers, stalls and markets, went up by 0.5%.

The web’s share of total retail relaxed down to 26.8% from 27.1% in March, as warmer weathers tempted many people back to physical shops. Total expenditure across in-store and online channels still grew 0.7% on the month.

 

A Word From An Expert: How The Rise Impacts ECommerce

 

Wanda Cadigan, SVP of Marketing at Cloudinary, commented, “We recently completed a survey which revealed how leading brands are using AI and automation to drive 4X ROI from visual media personalisation. The survey of 448 retailers across 14 countries revealed that AI and automation are ranked as crucial components of visual media strategies, particularly for driving personalisation, conversion, and trust at-scale. This means that with newer tools centred around AI and automation, the path to success in terms of attracting and retaining customers for newer ecommerce startups is paved with stronger support- especially when it comes to the ability to ‘rise above the competitive noise’ and gain attention.

“Additionally, on June 28, 2025, the European Accessibility Act (EAA) will be going into effect, which could have proved challenging for newer ecommerce businesses had they not had automated tools available to them. The EAA aims to regulate many of the digital products and services that most impact people with disabilities. This includes but is not limited to computers, ATMs, smartphones, e-commerce websites, and audio-visual equipment.

“Its most broadly defined category is “e-commerce,” which according to the directive is “a service provided at distance, through websites and mobile device-based services, by electronic means and at the individual request of a consumer, with a view to concluding a consumer contract.” This sweeping definition applies to almost any product or mobile app that processes a transaction between two parties that aren’t physically present. Everything from product marketplaces to hotel booking services, payment platforms to digital courses, ticket providers to gambling platforms- these are all covered under the directive’s definition of e-commerce.

But thankfully our research also revealed that the majority of retailers- especially those in ecommerce- have employed automation to handle personalisation: 67% dynamically adjust content for factors like language, currency, browser and device; 65% for geographic location; and 50% optimise content quality for bandwidth.

“As retailers of all sizes personalise experiences to reach more audiences, accessibility is also a top priority. Key accessibility measures retailers are taking include optimising content for screen readers (62%), adding alt text for images and videos (57%), and providing closed captions (56%). An impressive two-thirds of retailers feel prepared for the EAA.

“Levelling up performance and accessibility for diverse audiences allows retailers to deliver seamless experiences to more consumers. This explains why nearly all retailers (93%) estimated significant improvements of up to 4X from personalisation- and is in-line with there being a marked rise in ecommerce start-ups in the UK. Thanks to automated tools, the EAA is seen as a help and not a hindrance to UK-based ecommerce start-ups.”

David Carr, Similarweb, said, “While inflation has eased over the past year, many sectors are still grappling with the lasting impact of elevated prices. For ecommerce businesses and startups, rising retail costs, ongoing global conflicts, and the introduction of new tariffs are creating fresh headwinds for consumer demand. This is especially evident in non-essential sectors like fashion, where traffic and engagement have continued to decline year-over-year – with average monthly visitors falling by 6% between May 2024 and April 2025. Despite signs of economic stability, consumer caution remains high, and discretionary spending is likely to be among the first to soften.”