London Designer Outlet celebrates bumper 2024 as outlets continue to thrive
London Designer Outlet (LDO) at Wembley Park has hailed a 2024 which saw sales figures grow year-on-year by 5% to over £103m.
The outlet shopping centre also welcomed over 5.4 million visitors during the past 12 months, representing an increase of 2% compared to 2022.
These figures were bolstered by LDO reporting its strongest-ever Black Friday, with sales increasing by 12% year-on-year, including £749,000 worth of sales on the Saturday. Meanwhile, LDO’s retailers took over £3.4m in one week over Christmas, up 7.8%, and made nearly £1m of sales on Boxing Day, an increase of over 10%.
These figures have been aided by a tenant mix which has looked to reflect changes in Londoner’s shopping trends. During 2024, LDO secured 11 new lettings and relocations reflecting a total area of 15,759 sq ft. New tenants included French Connection and Rituals as well as outlet debuts for MINISO and Abaci.
Alongside the arrival of new brands, LDO also saw continued commitment from 18 existing tenants which, occupying a total area of 32,594 sq ft, recommitted their futures to the scheme and invested to upgrade and enhance their stores.
LDO has also enhanced its F&B line-up after announcing the addition of Afrikana, which is set to open early this year. It is the latest edition to the scheme’s F&B offering which includes the likes of Nando’s, Zizzi, Wagamama, Pizza Express, and Las Iguanas.
Matt Slade, retail director at Quintain, said: “Outlet retail continues to be remarkably resilient thanks to the unique in-person retail experience it offers compared to online shopping. As we move into 2025, we expect outlet destinations such as London Designer Outlet to continue to thrive, not only due to the offer value and competitive price point our brands provide, but also the relaxed experience-led environment which online shopping does not offer.
“The past year saw us work closely with new and existing brands to ensure they are presenting the most in demand merchandise ranges which our younger audience of shoppers are targeting. As a result, we have seen really strong sales amongst our lifestyle and footwear brands and LDO has become the best performing outlet stores within our retailers’ European portfolios.
“It has been exciting to welcome new brands to LDO throughout the year, keen to capture our strong footfall which has been aided thanks to Wembley’s bumper 2024 events calendar. During those large events we have seen sales rise this year, and with acts such as Oasis, Dua Lipa, and Coldplay, alongside a packed sporting calendar, we are seeing more brands looking for space at LDO keen not to miss out on this high footfall anticipated for 2025. We are therefore excited for what is in store for outlet retail in 2025 and look forward to welcoming even more new brands which reflect London’s diverse and cosmopolitan population.”
LDO is managed by Multi-Realm.