Senior retail executives in the UK remain positive about the industry’s Christmas trading despite early indicators of poor performance, according to a study by Harvey Nash.

Harvey Nash’s annual retail survey, conducted among nearly 150 of the UK’s most senior retail professionals, shows that 47% were happy with their company’s Christmas trading performance, with a further 35% claiming the seasonal period proved better than expected.  

The survey also uncovered reluctance to move into online retailing, with traditional retailers still sceptical of the value of the internet. It found that 59% of retailers professed little faith in online sales, believing less than 10% of their business will be done online over the next 12 months. A further 20% believe that only 10-20% of overall sales will be made online. Internet retail is the main channel to market for only 8% of companies surveyed and only 28% of executives believe that online greatly enhances their international reach.

Natalie O’Neill, head of the retail practice at Harvey Nash, says: "With consumer confidence so low and some recent poor sales figures from the bigger high street names, perception of 2007’s Christmas trading period has been negative to say the least.

"It was also quite interesting to note that, despite a vast increase in consumer internet adoption, retailers are still hesitant to trust online retailing. This is certainly a trend we’ll be monitoring over the next 12 months to log any change in industry opinion."

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