Flu remedies reign for consumers as bad weather takes its toll on shops

Only an Irish summer could send the population rushing out to stock up on hot drinks and cold remedies.

As the weather remains as disappointing as the economy, our buying habits have become warped this summer.

New figures show the worst-performing sellers were in areas that should sell well in summertime.

According to latest figures from Retail Excellence Ireland, the worst-performing sectors in the second quarter of this year were garden centre spending (down 19.6% on the same period last year), ladies fashion (-7.01%) and furniture and flooring (-9.55%).

These areas have been hit by the miserable weather, with consumers seemingly holding off buying large ticket items, and summer clothing. For good reason — we haven’t had a spring or summer.

On the bright side, however, the summer has seen a rise in the sales of hot drinks (+1.47%) and pharmacy sales (+0.75%). If that wasn’t a depressing sign, REI says that pharmacy sales picked up due to flu-related sales.

Overall, year-on-year sales levels fell by an average of 4.27% during the second quarter this year as it became the 13th consecutive quarter of sales decline.

Speaking at the launch of the second-quarter retail figures, REI chief David Fitzsimons said retailers can’t get a break in the weather these days and said further declines are expected.

“The second quarter of 2012 may prove to be a significant milestone for a number of retail operators as retail sales took a significant turn for the worse,” he said. “Three consecutive months of adverse weather, including the wettest June since records began, added to weakened consumer sentiment and a depressed domestic economy contrived to deliver a very distressed situation.”