London Christmas lights switch-on spurs notable uplift in visits

It can be hard to quantify just what sort of impact ‘promotional’ efforts like events and Christmas lights have on consumers and the neighbourhoods in which they shop. So a new report from “data specialists focused on people and place” CACI is quite illuminating (pun intended).

It’s produced in conjunction with London landlord Shaftesbury Capital, which owns vast tracts of property in Covent Garden and Soho/the West End. That includes two key areas where Christmas lights are a big feature (Covent Garden’s Piazza and Carnaby Street).

CACI said festive celebrations there “are proving to be a powerful driver of retail performance”. Its latest insights reveal that “Christmas light switch-on events significantly boost consumer spending, increase dwell time, and attract shoppers from a wider catchment area”.

Its research shows that spending across all major retail categories rose both on the day of the light switch-on events and in the week that followed, “demonstrating the sustained impact of these festive moments”.

While the food and beverage sector saw the most dramatic uplift (with spending rising 29% on the event day compared to the previous week’s equivalent day and maintaining a 15% uplift for the whole week), other sectors also saw impressive gains. Fashion was up 13% on the day and 9% for the week while health & beauty rose 10% for the week as a whole.

Overall, spending on event days increased by an average of 11% versus the same day the previous week, with shoppers also visiting an increase of stores per trip in the following week.

CACI also said average shopper drive time has risen by up to 3.2%, “indicating the Christmas events attract shoppers from further afield,” and underscoring the “commercial potential of investing in destination-led festive events”.

Looking specifically at Carnaby Street, on the switch-on day, footfall was 10% higher than the same time last year. The halo effect, highlighted by CACI’s analysis of the longevity of positive performance beyond just the switch-on date, was also evident, as Carnaby Street had 20% and 26% footfall increases on the following Saturday and Sunday, respectively, compared with 2024.

Meanwhile, Covent Garden has consistently had more than 14,000 visits an hour during peak periods in the days that followed its light switch-on.

Alex McCulloch, director at CACI, said: “Major festive events such as Christmas light switch-ons aren’t just for show or to celebrate the season, they play a vital role in driving engagement and spend, not only on the day itself but in the surrounding trading weeks. Our insight quantifies the impact, which is cross-sector, but you can really see how the likes of restaurants benefit from the moment and can even come to rely on it, at a time when people might have less of a focus on the experience economy and more on buying things. The best examples of light switch-ons are strategically planned with all parties in mind, ensuring marketing, operations, and tenants are aligned to maximise the opportunity.”

And Catherine Riccomini, director of Marketing and Communications at Shaftesbury Capital, added: “The Carnaby Street and Covent Garden Christmas light switch-ons are important dates in the calendar every year, but the impact lasts the entire festive season. Switch-on day clearly brings people together, and that social connection naturally makes us all want to enjoy the evening. Beyond that, you can see the consistent demand for a Christmas experience in the footfall uplift we’ve had in the days that follow. Visitors come in their thousands every day just to experience the lights, and the opportunity that creates for our brands across all sectors is huge.”