Less than one in eight of the UK’s top 100 UK retailers have plans in place should there be a ‘leave’ vote in the EU referendum, according to a survey by Bristol-headquartered law firm TLT.
This is despite the store groups themselves rating Brexit as one of the top three legal and regulatory issues concerning the sector and just over two thirds claiming quitting the EU would make exporting more difficult and more than half saying it would increase the cost of imports. 
Also 48% think being outside the EU would make it harder to hire staff. Other concerns voiced by retailers included currency fluctuations (18%), escalating labour costs (14%) and subdued trade because of lower consumer confidence (22%).
Some 46% of the firms thought membership of the EU was ‘quite or very helpful’ to their growth, 30% thought it harmful while 24% considered it made no difference.
TLT head of retail & consumer goods Perran Jervis, pictured, said: “Although the potential implications are a concern for some retailers, preparations for Brexit are clearly not top of the priority list just yet.
“With the lack of specifics around what a post-EU world might look like and the potential for a reasonably lengthy transition period this is perhaps not surprising.”
Despite the widespread media coverage of the Brexit debate ahead of the vote on June 23, the TLT Retail Survey 2016 revealed that the National Living Wage was actually the biggest issue for 94% of retailers with gender pay reporting also high on the list.
Perran Jervis added: “It is notable that the two most significant regulatory and legal burdens identified by retailers, the National Living Wage and gender pay reporting, are essentially ‘home-grown’ issues and have nothing to do with the EU.
“But, they are clearly front of mind for retailers because they will have an immediate impact on margins and will therefore affect how retailers operate their businesses to mitigate that impact.”
Retail research agency Conlumino conducted the research, based on interviews of senior managers in the UK’s top 100 retailers, during April and May.
