Success in retail sales has yearly peaks and troughs, and these are often due to seasonal events. As a small business owner, it’s beneficial to know when the peaks tend to occur, in your specific retail sector so that you can reap the sales benefits.

Money.co.uk has looked into average weekly sales by month to order to ascertain which month is the biggest in different retail sectors, as well as the biggest days for retail transactions over the last year. This will help to inform SMEs which days they should be focussing on to make the greatest profit.

What are the biggest days of the year for retail?

Money.co.uk business credit card experts looked into the biggest days for retail across the past year, measuring the number of retail transactions. They can reveal that the top three were:

The Sunday of Black Friday Weekend (26th November) – the latest figures show that sales were up 50.38% vs the daily average, and 59.51% of retail transactions occurred online. So-called Super Sunday is always the Sunday after Black Friday, so the 2024 date will be 1st Dec.
Easter Monday (10th April) – sales were up 32.7% vs the daily average. The next time Easter Monday takes place will be 5th May 2025.
Black Friday (24th November) – sales were up 32.5% vs the daily average. Black Friday this year will take place on 29th November.
Which offers are most attractive to consumers?

Cameron Jaques, money.co.uk business credit card expert gives his top tips to SME owners on whichdiscounts they should employ to engage most with their potential customers:

“According to a study by Science Direct, ‘Buy X Get One Free’ type offers are more attractive to consumers than ‘Save % on X When You Buy Y’ because they’re easier to think through. Customers are more likely to engage in an offer where they know immediately how much they will save.

Another study revealed consumers are also more likely to purchase products with precise percentage discounts – i.e. 7% vs 6.8% – this is likely for the same reason as above – ease of thinking!

Finally, advertising shorter discount periods can drive purchases, especially with smaller percentage discounts – i.e. 5% off for the next two days.

These are the discounts to consider if you’re an SME owner looking to make the most sales possible.”