British shoppers distrust retailers

Retailers aren’t having a good time of things at the moment, after a series of events have served to lower consumers’ trust in certain shops.

Overall sales growth in September had dropped for the second month running, with additional research indicating that trust in the retail sector has fallen to a four-year low.

Research from the OC&C Strategy Consultants showed that trust in the retail industry had fallen by one point to 70.8 (out of 100), in the lowest level since the monitor began four years ago.

Events including the horsemeat scandal, large company tax avoidance and the factory disaster in Pakistan, have hit retailers’ reputations hard. Tesco, for example, was one of the most trusted retailers, and yet is currently among the bottom five.

Furniture sellers took the worst of the decline in trust with a 3.1-point fall to 64.7 from 67.8 last year, while entertainment retailers were also subject a significant drop of 3.4 points to 70.2.

Sitting at the top of the pile are John Lewis (winning over 96 per cent of shoppers’ trust), Marks & Spencers and Waterstones. The general distrust also leaves discount retailers, such as Aldi, unscathed. It was the only category to build trust over the past 12 months with a 1.3-point increase.

Concerns that led to the distrust related to keeping promises and quality. Perhaps the dark mood will lead more shoppers to rediscover smaller, independent shops, which are more likely to be directly run by the owner.