What: UK retail sales volumes dropped 0.4% in September, ending a month of 0.7% growth in August, though Q3 volumes rose 0.7% on Q2 and 1.5% on the year.

Why it is important: Weather, not demand alone, is driving UK monthly retail swings: the heat that lifted June and August sales hurt autumn fashion in September, so seasonal ranges and stock planning carry more risk.

UK retail sales volumes fell 0.4% in September, according to the Office for National Statistics, after a 0.7% rise in August. Volumes were nevertheless 0.8% higher than in September 2025.

Online clothing retailers reported that new autumn and winter ranges sold poorly in unseasonably warm weather. Other non-food retailers saw volumes fall 0.4%, as customer cutbacks and lower footfall hit clothing, footwear and sports equipment retailers in particular.

Supermarkets performed well in July and August on warm weather and the World Cup, but volumes dipped in September to slightly below June levels.

Online spending values fell 0.4% in the month and 0.1% in Q3 against Q2, though they were up 7.4% on a year earlier. The share of sales made online slipped from 28.9% in August to 28.8% in September, while total in-store and online spend rose 0.3% in September.

Across Q3, the Retail Sales Index showed volumes up 0.7% on Q2 and 1.5% on Q3 2025.

IADS Notes: September's dip follows a summer in which UK retail volumes swung with the weather. Volumes rose 1% in June on hot weather and promotions, although department stores and household goods stores declined (Retail Week, July 2026), and the heatwave pushed online non-food spending up 5.1% and online penetration to 39% while in-store activity weakened (Retail Week, July 2026). Sales then fell 0.5% in July, with non-food down 1.3% and clothing stores leading the decline (BoF, August 2026), before rebounding 0.5% in August as online, department-store and fashion sales recovered and World Cup spending supported food (Financial Times, September 2026). Weather also weighed on September trading in France, where textile and apparel sales fell 15% year on year in the second-hottest September on record, with every channel down by double digits and department stores the most resilient at -11.3% (Fashion Network, October 2026).

In the UK, retail sales volumes slip in September as shoppers rein in spending