Shoppers are avoiding high streets across Britain after shops were smashed up and looted in the riots, retail bosses warned today as they held an emergency meeting.

Sainsbury’s, Greggs, Iceland, Lush, Specsavers and Shoe Zone stores have all been targeted amid a wave of attacks in recent days following the Southport stabbings.

The British Retail Consortium confirmed footfall in city centres had fallen ‘quite significantly’ since the riots began which would ‘have an impact on businesses’.

The industry body said some shops will have ‘shorter opening hours or temporary closures’ but the ‘big priority’ was ensuring staff and customers are kept safe.

The mass disorder, which began on Tuesday last week, has also seen hotels housing asylum seekers attacked and more than 400 people have now been arrested.

As police officers and communities brace for more unrest today, it comes as:

A charity shop in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, is boarded up today ahead of potential unrest later

Shops in Bristol board up their windows today amid fears over planned demonstrations

An Asian cafe and store is boarded up in Westcliff-on-Sea today ahead of possible unrest

Shops in Bristol board up their windows today amid fears over planned demonstrations

The violence in cities such as Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol, Hull and Belfast was sparked by false claims about the identity of the teenager suspected of killing three young girls and injuring several others in a knife attack in Southport on July 29.

On Saturday, when the rioting was at its worst, footfall in Manchester plunged 17.5 per cent, Bristol fell 13.4 per cent, Belfast dropped 6.4 per cent; and the North West region as a whole slipped 5.6 per cent.

Overall footfall in England dropped 1.9 per cent over the weekend despite London, the South East and East of England all seeing slight increases.

Today, British Retail Consortium chief executive Helen Dickinson told BBC Breakfast there had been ‘some real devastating impacts on our communities up and down the country’.

She added: ‘More importantly, and the big focus certainly for all retail businesses, is on keeping the people, the teams of people who serve their customers day in, day out as safe as they can in the circumstances and making sure that both they and their customers are kept safe.

The destroyed interior of a Lush shop in Hull after it was looted amid the riots on Saturday

A riot police officer stands guard outside a destroyed Shoe Zone shop in Hull on Saturday

Two women are pictured holding crocs and Lush products outside a store in Hull on Saturday

‘So that’s really the big priority and that’s the reason why we are gathering many of our members together this morning.’

Ms Dickinson said there would be ‘some impacts in terms of shorter opening hours or temporary closures’.

But she continued: ‘The vast, vast majority of shops up and down the country are continuing to serve their customers as usual. What we don’t know really yet is the significance of the business impact.

‘What we do know is over the course of certainly the weekend and the days last week and earlier this week is that we are seeing footfall – so the number of people coming into our city centres – begin to fall quite significantly.

‘That obviously will have an impact on businesses, but the real focus at the moment is on people and making sure that employees and customers are kept safe.’

The Greggs store in Hull was also among the shops targeted in violence on Saturday

Abdelkader Mohamad Al Alloush, owner of the Sham Supermarket in Belfast, sits outside his shop yesterday after it was burned during disorder in the area following a protest on Saturday

The aftermath of rioting in Hull city centre after shops were looted and damaged on Saturday

Among the shops affected by the riots were a Greggs, Lush, Specsavers and Shoe Zone in Hull.

Elsewhere, a Sainsbury’s was ransacked in Manchester and an Iceland was looted in Middlesbrough. In Belfast, a local supermarket was burned.

Retail crime has become a critical issue for retailers in recent years who have been clamping down over rising levels of shoplifting, harassment and violence against shop workers. 

Speaking about the wider increase in assaults and aggression against retail staff, Ms Dickinson said: ‘Our data has shown that that has risen significantly over the last few years and particularly taken an uptick since Covid.

‘Over 1,300 incidents of violence and abuse a day, and this was before what we’ve seen over the last ten days or so.’

She pointed out that the previous government committed to a standalone offence for violence and abuse against a retail worker, and this proposal has been carried forward by the new government.

Ms Dickinson went on: ‘We really look forward to that being put in place and the police commitment to make sure that they are responding to all the incidents that get raised with them in order to focus on really bringing that colleague safety front and centre in our communities up and down the country.’

The BRC represents more than 200 major retailers as well as thousands of smaller independents who are represented by its trade association members.

Police outside a Sainsbury’s Local store in Manchester on Saturday after it was ransacked

The interior of the Sainsbury’s store in Manchester after it was stormed by masked yobs

A TikTok stream had 14,000 people watching while people looted an Iceland in Middlesbrough

People are seen outside an Iceland store in Middlesbrough which was looted amid the chaos

The Lush store in Hull was one of the worst hit when it left with smashed front windows and products littered outside the front door on Saturday.

The company said on Monday that its staff were ‘devastated at what has happened to our beautiful shop in Hull and how our fellow retailers have also been treated’.

Police, the Home Office and the Government joined the BRC and UK retailers for today’s urgent talks over how to protect staff and customers.

Meanwhile the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said it was doing what it could to help small firms worried about being caught up in the unrest.

National chairman Martin McTague said: ‘Millions of small businesses are on our high streets and town centres, populating our local communities and finding themselves on the front line of the recent public disorder, violence and damage which all come at human cost.

British Retail Consortium chief executive Helen Dickinson told BBC Breakfast this morning that there had been ‘some real devastating impacts on our communities up and down the country’

‘Alongside supporting the police response, many have tried to protect their premises and are first in line the day after to help clean up their streets.

‘Local authorities, insurance companies and politicians of all stripes need to be ready to support their small businesses to rebuild, recover and get back on their feet.’

A different retail trade group, the Federation of Independent Retailers, also said it was working to help its members who might be affected by rioting, and collating feedback to make requests for government support.

Shops are being urged to remove displays and equipment such as tables and chairs outside shops which could be stolen or used by rioters as missiles.

Retailers are also considering closing their stores early or temporarily if they have concerns about unrest taking place nearby.

The British Retail Consortium revealed yesterday that UK total retail sales increased by 0.5 per cent year on year in July, which was below the growth rate of 1.5 per cent in July 2023

Holiday Inn owner IHG Group also called for calm to be restored after rioters attacked some of its UK hotels allegedly housing asylum seekers over the weekend.

The National Business Crime Centre (NBCC) could also offer advice to retailers gathering for the member meeting. The NBCC is a resource for police and businesses to work together to prevent and combat crime.

Around 100 people have already been charged in connection with the unrest across the UK, and charges continued to be brought last night – with defendants appearing in court today.

Police are now braced for further disorder as they monitor reports of at least 30 possible gatherings and threats against immigration law specialists.

Retail and destinations insights expert Diane Wehrle told Retail Week: ‘The fundamental issue for retail is that it undermines consumer confidence, just at a time when it was starting to inch back up.

Online non-food sales increased by 0.3 per cent year on year in July, against an average decline of 6.9 per cent in July 2023. This was above the 12-month average decline of 2 per cent

‘It makes people feel vulnerable, so they don’t want to risk going into a town or a city centre for fear they might end up caught in the middle of something like a riot.

‘Unless this unrest is quelled quickly, it does run the risk of undermining retail during what should otherwise be quite a strong period, with the school holidays and people taking time off work and going away.’

Approximately 6,000 specialist officers will be at the ready by the end of the week for the so-called ‘standing army’ of police announced by Sir Keir on Monday.

These officers have been taken away from their regular duties to deal with ongoing disorder.

In addition to more riot police being put on stand-by, forces are also stepping up neighbourhood policing patrols, teams of detectives are drawing on CCTV, body-worn footage and making use of retrospective facial recognition to identify perpetrators of violence, and intelligence teams are monitoring well-known influencers and organisers for activity.

The online penetration rate – the proportion of non-food items bought online – rose to 35.5 per cent in July from 34.9 per cent in July 2023, below the 12-month average of 36.3 per cent 

Kate Palmer, employment services director at HR firm Peninsula, told MailOnline: ‘Where there are concerns over whether a business can safely open, for example, if it has been targeted by rioters and suffered damage, then employers may need to look at what their contractual position is with employees.

‘Employers have a duty of care to employees, which includes providing a safe place to work. Temporary closures may require temporary layoff of employees, other businesses may choose to ask employees to take unpaid leave or annual leave while they ensure that it is safe to reopen.’

She advised businesses to consider moving start or finish times to avoid employees having to leave or arrive at work during times when protests are happening, and also ensure nobody is leaving the workplace alone or working alone if there are concerns the business may become a target for violence.

Meanwhile separate figures from the BRC released yesterday showed the late arrival of summer returned retail sales to growth – boosted by consumers buying clothing and beauty products in preparation for the holidays.

Total retail sales increased by 0.5 per cent year on year in July, although this was relatively subdued against 2023’s 1.5 per cent growth, according to the BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor.

Food sales were up 2.6 per cent year on year over the three months to July, but again well down on last year’s growth of 8.4 per cent.

Sales of items other than food fell 1.7 per cent year on year over the quarter, the three months to July, against a decline of 0.5 per cent in July 2023, as consumer spending on holidays and entertainment squeezed out sales of indoor goods such as

Separate figures from Barclays show consumer card spending fell by 0.3 per cent year on year in July as the mixed weather across the month, combined with selective discretionary spending, continued to pose challenges for retailers.

While the arrival of warmer days and belated summer sales did result in a modest recovery for retail, 39 per cent of consumers said July’s rainy weather led them to cut back on ‘summer spending’.

The average Briton reduced their outgoings by £133.40, with 18 to 34-year-olds cutting back the most at £158.40.

Pubs, bars and clubs saw an uplift of 4.9 per cent in July, the category’s highest growth since January as football fans flocked to their local to watch the final rounds of the Euro 2024 tournament, Barclays data shows.