Our MD Bob Hall responds to the latest retail sales news from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI):

While the release of the latest immigration statistics and GCSE results have dominated the national news agenda, the news that online and high street retail sales declined year on year to August* seems to have slipped through the net.

Commenting on the news, Bob Hall, MD of Greenlite Group said, "Although the summer started well, the recent news clearly illustrates what difficult times these are for retailers, both online and on the high street. It's encouraging to read that the survey reports sales growth is expected to recover, in the long term, although pressure on household budgets is set to persist given there is little sign of wages picking up.

"Clearly the onus in on retailers to 'up their game'; whether by discounting or if they focus more on enhancing the shopping experience itself. At Greenlite we're advising our retail customers to rediscover the role of lighting design in creating a sense of 'theatre', encouraging customers back to the high street for a fuller shopping experience.

"In addition savvy retailers will take advantage of technologies rather than shying away from them. For example, the rise of the changing room selfie (chelfie) means fashion retailers have the perfect opportunity to use well-designed, flattering lighting and well positioned mirrors, enabling shoppers to send that image to their friends for feedback. If they look and feel good, if the feedback is positive then they are more likely to make that purchase - all because the retailer thought about how the customer feels and how to enhance their experience."

(*source: Quarterly CBI Distributive Trades Survey)