Effective marketing may be particularly important for UK retailers

There are lots of forms of marketing available to companies these days. For example, they can take advantage of the services of brochure printers.

At present, effective advertising may be particularly important for UK retailers. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) noted that the sector is being hit by a combination of problems.

It remarked: “Napoleon famously called England a nation of shopkeepers, but today the rise of online shopping, a double-dip recession and other factors have led to a string of bankruptcies, threatening the ‘high streets’ that have anchored the country’s towns for centuries.”

The publication also pointed out that the British retail sector saw 194 bankruptcies last year, which was a rise of six per cent on 2011 and a 16 per cent increase on 2010, according to Deloitte LLP.

It added: “Retailing was once a big part of Britain’s growth, providing the most jobs outside the public sector and accounting for more than five per cent of gross domestic product. But sales volumes since 2008 have roughly flat-lined.”

The WSJ went on to point out that footfall in UK shops was 4.6 per cent lower in January this year than it was during the same period in 2012.

According to the publication, the main problem facing British retailers is the fact that the spending power of Britons has dropped since the banking crisis.

However, it is not all bad news. The retail sector showed an “upswing” in February, with figures produced by the British Retail Consortium suggesting that during the month there was a country-wide same-store increase in trade of 2.7 per cent. The organisation hailed this as the strongest sales growth in the sector for three years.

To help increase their levels of trade, some stores are making use of printers in London to produce marketing material such as brochures.