Basket & Barometer February 2026

Send us Fan Mail Diane Wehrle CEO at Rendle Intelligence and Insights joins Simon for their monthly chatA cautious consumer shows up in January with fewer trips but bigger baskets, while retail parks gain and high streets hold on. We dig into youth unemployment, wage compression, AI’s impact on entry roles, and why productivity must carry the next phase of retail.• January footfall near flat with retail parks up• Sales values rise while transactions fall• Food inflation props value; non-food softens• High street sales close to parity year on year• GfK confidence slips, savings tick up• Youth unemployment at 16% drives concern• Wage rises meet NI pressures and job cuts• Pay bands compress between colleague and supervisor• Housing sales drop chills discretionary categories• Shift focus from process to experience  #theproductivityexpertsRegister for the 2026 Productivity ForumDownload a copy of our first ReThink Productivity Retail ReportConnect to Simon on LinkedInFollow ReThink on LinkedIn