Ice and snow puts chill on high street's crucial Christmas weekend

Fears that the high street’s make-or-break pre-Christmas weekend will be hit by the severe weather have grown after forecasters warned there will be no let-up in Britain’s cold snap until Monday at least.

The bad weather could mean bad news for retailers, who have described the next two days as critical for sales after weeks of price cutting has failed to entice large enough numbers of people through their doors

The Met Office issued warnings of ice which are due to stay in place until 10am on Monday. Saturday morning was due to be cold and frosty, with ice in places. Some areas will have scattered rain, sleet and snow showers, and there may be some repeats of enchanted snowy scenes many parts of the country saw on Friday.

There was 6cm of snow recorded in Glasgow on Friday, with 2cm in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, and 4cm in parts of Northern Ireland.

That could mean bad news for retailers, who have describedthe next two days as critical for sales after weeks of price cutting ahs failed to entice large enough numbers of people through their doors.

Jace Tyrrell, from the New West End Company, which represents Oxford Street and Regent Street, Britain’s two busiest shopping streets, said: “For many retailers this is the make-or-break weekend, especially for the fashion and technology sectors.”

Lower-than-average temperatures will continue and the mercury is likely to drop to minus 1C in the south of England and Wales, minus 2C in Yorkshire, minus 4C in the Borders and minus 6C in Scotland over the weekend, said Clare Allen, forecaster for MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association.
Source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/christmas/8962941/Ice-and-snow-puts-chill-on-high-streets-crucial-Christmas-weekend.html