Affinity portfolio celebrates standout May Bank Holiday

Global Mutual’s Affinity outlet portfolio has reported leisure-led sales uplifts of up to +252 percent and footfall increases of up to +88 percent following a programme of experience-driven activations across its schemes during the May Bank Holiday weekend.

The results highlight the increasingly important role leisure, family-focused events and community engagement now play in driving commercial performance across outlet retail destinations, with catering, gifting and wider retail categories also benefiting from increased dwell time and cross-category spend.

At Affinity Lancashire, The Wookiees Strike Back Star Wars Day activation featured live character appearances and an interactive themed trail designed to drive engagement across the scheme. The event generated an 87.52 percent uplift in footfall compared with the previous week, while sales increased by 3.01 percent, highlighting the positive commercial impact of the event-driven approach.

Meanwhile at Affinity Sterling Mills Outlet Shopping, the centre’s Big Bloom Bash event combined children’s entertainment, seasonal activities and family experiences to drive engagement across the Bank Holiday weekend. The event also coincided with the continued popularity of its recently launched outdoor play park, featuring Kompan Scotland Ltd’s first-of-its-kind treehouse installation. The event saw footfall increase, as well as a 17.80 percent uplift in total sales when compared to the same period last year, alongside an 8.86 percent rise in like-for-like sales versus last year.

At Affinity Devon, leisure continued to emerge as a major performance driver, with the category delivering a +252 percent uplift compared with the same period last year thanks to operators like World of Wonder and Really Wild Planet. Catering also performed strongly with a +23 percent increase, while Gifts & Confectionery saw a +14 percent uplift, reinforcing the growing relationship between leisure-led visitation and cross-category spend.

Affinity Staffordshire also reported strong commercial performance following its May the 4th Star Wars themed activation over the Bank Holiday weekend. The experience-led event delivered a 9 percent increase in footfall compared with previous years, alongside a significant +33% year-on-year uplift in sales, underlining the growing value of targeted experiential programming in driving customer engagement, dwell time and retail spend across outlet destinations.

James Kevill, Asset Manager at Global Mutual, said: “Consumers increasingly expect retail destinations to offer more than shopping alone. Families are seeking engaging, accessible experiences where leisure, food, entertainment and retail combine to create a more meaningful day out experience.

What we’re seeing across the Affinity portfolio is that strategic investment into events, leisure and community engagement is translating directly into commercial performance. The destinations performing strongest today are those creating reasons for customers to stay longer, visit more frequently and engage with multiple parts of the scheme.”

The performance reflects Global Mutual’s continued investment in creating experience-led outlet destinations that blend retail, leisure and community engagement to drive sustained growth and visitor appeal across its Affinity portfolio.