By Scott Wright

TOTAL retail sales in Scotland improved in February, helped by purchases related to Valentine’s Day, but remained behind pre-pandemic levels, new figures show.

And the “polarisation” between food and drink and non-food continued, according to the figures published by the Scottish Retail Consortium today.

Total sales in Scotland tumbled by 6.3 per cent in February compared with the same month in 2020, before the pandemic took hold, the latest Scottish Retail Sales Monitor found. Sales had fallen 0.8% in February 2020.

The survey highlighted the impact of rising inflation on food sales, which rose by 3.5% versus February 2020, when they increased by 2.9%. However, total non-food sales, which reflect the more discretionary aspect of consumer spending, plunged by 14.5% in February when compared with the same month of 2020, when they decreased by 3.8%.

David Lonsdale, director of the SRC, said the figures underline the “prolonged nature of the retail recovery” from the pandemic, and warned retailers continue to face difficult trading conditions, from rising inflation to supply chain disruption. Annual UK consumer prices index inflation is now forecast by the Bank of England to peak at around 7.25% in April, having jumped to 5.5% in January, its highest since 1992.

Mr Lonsdale said: “February saw a further incremental improvement in Scottish retail sales, helped in part by purchases associated with St Valentine’s Day and a slight uptick in people returning to workplaces. However, retail sales still lag behind the comparable period prior to the pandemic, underlining the prolonged nature of the retail recovery.”

He added: “There is no shortage of storm clouds facing the industry at the moment and the outlook remains uncertain.”

Mr Lonsdale said separately yesterday that retailers “will be feeling a little deflated” that the Scottish Government delayed the relaxation of all coronavirus restrictions, following a recent rise in cases of Covid. The legal requirement to wear face coverings on public transport and most indoor public settings will continue until at least early April, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said yesterday. However, the legal requirement for businesses and service providers to collect customer details for contact tracing will end as planned on March 21.

Mr Lonsdale added: “Rightly this new phase of moving beyond restrictions will mean much of the duty to keep shops and colleagues safe falls on businesses themselves not Covid-related regulations. It will be up to retailers and customers to continue to show consideration and good sense whilst Covid remains a risk.”