Retail & Shopping
303 organisations are counted with Retail & Shopping as their primary sector — 9% of everything with a sector on record, and the 4th largest of 16. A further 102 work in it alongside another sector.
organisations counted with Retail & Shopping as their primary sector, across the Bailiwick’s four inhabited islands.
Coverage
#coverage ⧉How complete is this sector’s count?
An estimated 80% of this sector’s organisations are counted. The figure is a measurement, not a target: it comes from the same independent comparison the whole census is measured by, restricted to this sector’s rows.
Island-wide, the Bailiwick’s true trading population is estimated at 4,877–5,990, measured on 3 September 2026 by capture–recapture against Google's business listings for the Bailiwick, with every organisation that was itself added from those listings left out of the comparison so the two counts stay independent.
A sector’s coverage is published as a percentage only. The stratum carries no confidence interval, so a sector population would be a point estimate dressed as a range — and the organisations invisible to both the census and the comparison listing pull every such estimate down.
Every count in this chapter is therefore a floor, never a total.
Numbers you can print
#headlines ⧉The figures in this chapter that clear the citable bar — coverage high enough, count large enough, denominator named. A figure that does not clear it appears further down as a chart, badged, or not at all.
The signature
#signature ⧉Concentrated in St Sampson
St Peter Port holds the most in raw terms — 124 of the 259 whose parish is on record, a concentration of 1.12 against that parish's share of everything counted. The sharpest concentration among the parishes large enough to name is St Sampson at 1.54. A quotient of one means the same mix as the island, which is the commonest reading and should look like nothing. Smaller parishes are drawn but not named: below 30 organisations a quotient moves on a single new record.
Where Retail & Shopping is over- and under-represented
A parish on record for 259 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (85%)
Tap a parish for its full name and count — at this size some shapes are too small to carry a label. Every parish is in the table.
| Parish | Organisations | vs island (LQ) |
|---|---|---|
| St Peter Port | 124 | 1.12 |
| St Sampson | 53 | 1.54 |
| Vale | 28 | 0.82 |
| Castel | 19 | 0.88 |
| St Martin | 14 | 0.62 |
| St Saviour | 6 | 0.76 |
| St Pierre du Bois | 6 | 0.76 |
| Forest | 4 | — |
| St Andrew | 4 | — |
| Torteval | 1 | — |
A location quotient: this sector's share of a parish against its share of the island. A quotient of one means "the same mix as the island", and should look like nothing. Hatched parishes hold too few of this sector to compare at all, and parishes holding fewer than 30 are drawn and tabled but never named in a sentence — a quotient over a handful moves on one new record.
12 Guernsey organisations in this sector have no parish on record — a real gap, not an exclusion, and the map fills in as verification proceeds; a further 32 trade on Alderney, Sark or Herm and are counted in the island split rather than on this map.
What it is made of
#composition ⧉Specialist Retail leads, on 55 organisations
Every organisation is counted once, in its primary sub-sector. Separately, 102 organisations outside this count work in Retail & Shopping alongside another sector — they are not in the bars below.
Retail & Shopping by sub-sector
Counted over all 303 active Retail & Shopping organisations
| Primary sub-sector | Organisations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Specialist Retail | 55 | 18% |
| Clothing & Fashion | 44 | 15% |
| Gifts & Cards | 37 | 12% |
| Hardware DIY | 26 | 9% |
| Jewellery & Watches | 20 | 7% |
| Convenience Stores | 17 | 6% |
| Home & Garden Retail | 13 | 4% |
| Pharmacies | 13 | 4% |
| Florists | 12 | 4% |
| Books & Stationery | 11 | 4% |
| Health Beauty | 11 | 4% |
| Charity Shops | 9 | 3% |
| Electronics & Appliances | 9 | 3% |
| Supermarkets & Grocers | 8 | 3% |
| Sports & Outdoor | 6 | 2% |
| Pet Shops & Supplies | 5 | 2% |
| Toys & Games | 5 | 2% |
| Direct at sector level | 1 | 0% |
| Florists & wedding florists | 1 | 0% |
Counts each organisation's primary sub-sector, so the bars sum to the sector, and each is the roll call the directory lists under that name.
1 are classified straight at sector level with no sub-sector — a real cohort, kept visible rather than folded into the largest bar. 102 further organisations work in Retail & Shopping alongside another sector and are not in these bars: each is counted in the sub-sector of the sector it calls its main line. "Works in", never "is in".
Where it happens
#parishes ⧉St Peter Port holds 124 of them
1 in 2 of the 259 whose parish is on record. Beyond Guernsey, Alderney 23, Sark 8, Herm 1.
Retail & Shopping organisations by parish
A parish on record for 259 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (85%)
Tap a parish for its full name and count — at this size some shapes are too small to carry a label. Every parish is in the table.
| Parish | Organisations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| St Peter Port | 124 | 48% |
| St Sampson | 53 | 20% |
| Vale | 28 | 11% |
| Castel | 19 | 7% |
| St Martin | 14 | 5% |
| St Saviour | 6 | 2% |
| St Pierre du Bois | 6 | 2% |
| Forest | 4 | 2% |
| St Andrew | 4 | 2% |
| Torteval | 1 | 0% |
Guernsey parishes only; Alderney, Sark and Herm are counted in the island split above.
12 Guernsey organisations in this sector have no parish on record — a real gap, not an exclusion, and the map fills in as verification proceeds; a further 32 trade on Alderney, Sark or Herm and are counted in the island split rather than on this map.
How old it is
#age ⧉Half of those with a founding year began after 2000
The island's median is 2006. Counts organisations still trading that publish a founding year; older firms are likelier to do so — survivorship and reporting bias at once.
Retail & Shopping organisations by founding era
A founding year on record for 132 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (44%)
On record for 44% — indicative| Founding era | Organisations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| pre-1800 | 2 | 2% |
| 1800s | 7 | 5% |
| 1900–49 | 6 | 5% |
| 1950–79 | 25 | 19% |
| 1980–99 | 21 | 16% |
| 2000–09 | 19 | 14% |
| 2010–19 | 26 | 20% |
| 2020s | 26 | 20% |
Counts organisations still trading that publish a founding year; older firms are likelier to do so — survivorship and reporting bias at once.
What they can do
#capabilities ⧉The typical mapped organisation holds 3 capabilities, against 3 island-wide
64% of the sector have at least one service resolved to the graph, across 14 domains, against 71% island-wide. Capabilities as published by each organisation and resolved to the graph; a business with no capability claim is not necessarily a business that does none of these things.
Capability groups on record
A capability on record for 193 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (64%)
| By group | Organisations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Gifts, cards & crafts | 67 | 35% |
| Homeware & furnishings | 48 | 25% |
| Specialist & second-hand shops | 39 | 20% |
| Clothing & footwear | 37 | 19% |
| Trade counters & merchants | 24 | 12% |
| Jewellery & watches | 21 | 11% |
| Everyday & convenience | 17 | 9% |
| Carpentry & joinery | 10 | 5% |
| Tiling & flooring | 10 | 5% |
| Electrical | 8 | 4% |
| Painting & decorating | 4 | 2% |
| Specialist trades | 3 | 2% |
| Plastering & rendering | 2 | 1% |
| Plumbing, heating & ventilation | 2 | 1% |
| General building & structural | 1 | 1% |
| Windows, doors & glazing | 1 | 1% |
Capabilities as published by each organisation and resolved to the graph; a business with no capability claim is not necessarily a business that does none of these things.
121 of the 193 with a capability on record span two or more of these groups (63%). Two capabilities inside one group are one trade, not two, which is why this counts groups rather than nodes.
What the most organisations are on record for
A capability on record for 193 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (64%)
| The busiest nodes | Organisations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Gifts & giftware | 53 | 27% |
| Homeware & home décor | 32 | 17% |
| Clothing & fashion | 30 | 16% |
| Greeting cards & stationery | 22 | 11% |
| Jewellery & watches | 20 | 10% |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 19 | 10% |
| Hardware & DIY | 14 | 7% |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 14 | 7% |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 13 | 7% |
| Builders' & timber merchants | 13 | 7% |
| Supermarkets & grocers | 12 | 6% |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | 11 | 6% |
An organisation on two of these is counted on both, so the rows add up to more than the number of organisations.
Capabilities held together
A capability on record for 193 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (64%)
| What goes with what | Sector | Count | Row share | vs island (LQ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gifts & giftware | Gifts & giftware | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Gifts & giftware | Homeware & home décor | 23 | 26% | 1.60 |
| Gifts & giftware | Clothing & fashion | 12 | 13% | 1.65 |
| Gifts & giftware | Greeting cards & stationery | 16 | 18% | 1.79 |
| Gifts & giftware | Jewellery & watches | 12 | 13% | 1.37 |
| Gifts & giftware | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 17 | 19% | 1.78 |
| Gifts & giftware | Hardware & DIY | 1 | 1% | 0.23 |
| Gifts & giftware | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Gifts & giftware | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 5 | 6% | 1.09 |
| Gifts & giftware | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Gifts & giftware | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Gifts & giftware | Convenience stores & corner shops | 3 | 3% | 0.72 |
| Homeware & home décor | Gifts & giftware | 23 | 33% | 1.60 |
| Homeware & home décor | Homeware & home décor | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Homeware & home décor | Clothing & fashion | 8 | 12% | 1.42 |
| Homeware & home décor | Greeting cards & stationery | 14 | 20% | 2.02 |
| Homeware & home décor | Jewellery & watches | 5 | 7% | 0.74 |
| Homeware & home décor | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 7 | 10% | 0.94 |
| Homeware & home décor | Hardware & DIY | 3 | 4% | 0.89 |
| Homeware & home décor | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 2 | 3% | 0.78 |
| Homeware & home décor | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 1 | 1% | 0.28 |
| Homeware & home décor | Builders' & timber merchants | 1 | 1% | 0.36 |
| Homeware & home décor | Supermarkets & grocers | 1 | 1% | 0.78 |
| Homeware & home décor | Convenience stores & corner shops | 4 | 6% | 1.24 |
| Clothing & fashion | Gifts & giftware | 12 | 34% | 1.65 |
| Clothing & fashion | Homeware & home décor | 8 | 23% | 1.42 |
| Clothing & fashion | Clothing & fashion | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Clothing & fashion | Greeting cards & stationery | 2 | 6% | 0.57 |
| Clothing & fashion | Jewellery & watches | 5 | 14% | 1.46 |
| Clothing & fashion | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 5 | 14% | 1.33 |
| Clothing & fashion | Hardware & DIY | 1 | 3% | 0.58 |
| Clothing & fashion | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Clothing & fashion | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Clothing & fashion | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Clothing & fashion | Supermarkets & grocers | 1 | 3% | 1.53 |
| Clothing & fashion | Convenience stores & corner shops | 1 | 3% | 0.61 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Gifts & giftware | 16 | 37% | 1.79 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Homeware & home décor | 14 | 33% | 2.02 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Clothing & fashion | 2 | 5% | 0.57 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Greeting cards & stationery | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Jewellery & watches | 1 | 2% | 0.24 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 6 | 14% | 1.30 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Hardware & DIY | 1 | 2% | 0.47 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Greeting cards & stationery | Convenience stores & corner shops | 3 | 7% | 1.49 |
| Jewellery & watches | Gifts & giftware | 12 | 29% | 1.37 |
| Jewellery & watches | Homeware & home décor | 5 | 12% | 0.74 |
| Jewellery & watches | Clothing & fashion | 5 | 12% | 1.46 |
| Jewellery & watches | Greeting cards & stationery | 1 | 2% | 0.24 |
| Jewellery & watches | Jewellery & watches | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Jewellery & watches | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 6 | 14% | 1.33 |
| Jewellery & watches | Hardware & DIY | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Jewellery & watches | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Jewellery & watches | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 12 | 29% | 5.56 |
| Jewellery & watches | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Jewellery & watches | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Jewellery & watches | Convenience stores & corner shops | 1 | 2% | 0.51 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Gifts & giftware | 17 | 37% | 1.78 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Homeware & home décor | 7 | 15% | 0.94 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Clothing & fashion | 5 | 11% | 1.33 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Greeting cards & stationery | 6 | 13% | 1.30 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Jewellery & watches | 6 | 13% | 1.33 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Hardware & DIY | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 4 | 9% | 1.69 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | Convenience stores & corner shops | 1 | 2% | 0.47 |
| Hardware & DIY | Gifts & giftware | 1 | 5% | 0.23 |
| Hardware & DIY | Homeware & home décor | 3 | 14% | 0.89 |
| Hardware & DIY | Clothing & fashion | 1 | 5% | 0.58 |
| Hardware & DIY | Greeting cards & stationery | 1 | 5% | 0.47 |
| Hardware & DIY | Jewellery & watches | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Hardware & DIY | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Hardware & DIY | Hardware & DIY | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Hardware & DIY | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 6 | 29% | 7.64 |
| Hardware & DIY | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Hardware & DIY | Builders' & timber merchants | 8 | 38% | 9.59 |
| Hardware & DIY | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Hardware & DIY | Convenience stores & corner shops | 1 | 5% | 1.02 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Gifts & giftware | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Homeware & home décor | 2 | 13% | 0.78 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Clothing & fashion | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Greeting cards & stationery | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Jewellery & watches | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Hardware & DIY | 6 | 38% | 7.64 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Builders' & timber merchants | 8 | 50% | 12.59 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Plumbers' & electrical merchants | Convenience stores & corner shops | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Gifts & giftware | 5 | 23% | 1.09 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Homeware & home décor | 1 | 5% | 0.28 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Clothing & fashion | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Greeting cards & stationery | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Jewellery & watches | 12 | 55% | 5.56 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 4 | 18% | 1.69 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Hardware & DIY | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | Convenience stores & corner shops | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Gifts & giftware | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Homeware & home décor | 1 | 6% | 0.36 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Clothing & fashion | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Greeting cards & stationery | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Jewellery & watches | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Hardware & DIY | 8 | 47% | 9.59 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 8 | 47% | 12.59 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Builders' & timber merchants | Convenience stores & corner shops | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Gifts & giftware | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Homeware & home décor | 1 | 13% | 0.78 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Clothing & fashion | 1 | 13% | 1.53 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Greeting cards & stationery | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Jewellery & watches | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Hardware & DIY | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Supermarkets & grocers | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Supermarkets & grocers | Convenience stores & corner shops | 6 | 75% | 16.05 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Gifts & giftware | 3 | 15% | 0.72 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Homeware & home décor | 4 | 20% | 1.24 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Clothing & fashion | 1 | 5% | 0.61 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Greeting cards & stationery | 3 | 15% | 1.49 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Jewellery & watches | 1 | 5% | 0.51 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Souvenirs & Guernsey gifts | 1 | 5% | 0.47 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Hardware & DIY | 1 | 5% | 1.02 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Plumbers' & electrical merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Bespoke jewellery & goldsmithing | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Builders' & timber merchants | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Supermarkets & grocers | 6 | 30% | 16.05 |
| Convenience stores & corner shops | Convenience stores & corner shops | 0 | 0% | 0.00 |
Each cell counts the organisations on record for both capabilities; the diagonal is blank on purpose. Capabilities as published by each organisation and resolved to the graph; a business with no capability claim is not necessarily a business that does none of these things.
Is this what they do, or one of many things they do?
A positioning note on record for 169 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (56%)
On record for 56% — indicative| How central is it? | Organisations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| This is what they do | 117 | 69% |
| Core to the business | 83 | 49% |
| One of many services | 68 | 40% |
| A sideline | 20 | 12% |
The roles overlap: one business can be “this is what they do” for one capability and “a sideline” for another, so these rows add up past the number of businesses.
Kinds of shop
#specific ⧉Kinds of shop
The predicate that ought to define this sector is the one it publishes least. The gap below is the finding.
Kinds of shop — Retail & Shopping
Kinds of shop on record for 84 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (28%)
SuppressedNot enough on record yet for kinds of shop (84 of 303). A blank here is deliberate — the module renders the gap rather than a number it cannot stand behind.
Verified from published evidence; businesses without a web presence are under-represented.
The sector online
#digital ⧉62% of Retail & Shopping have a website of its own
Against 67% island-wide — 5 points below the island rate. The gap is the robust part: the sector’s own rate is measured over the organisations we have found, and the ones still missing are disproportionately the web-invisible.
Digital presence, this sector and the island
Counted over all 303 active Retail & Shopping organisations
The right-hand column is the gap between retail & shopping and the island; both values are in the table view. Measured in share of organisations.
Each track carries both values at its ends; the gap between retail & shopping and the island is in the table view. Measured in share of organisations.
| Sector against island | Retail & Shopping | The island | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has a website | 62% | 67% | −5% |
| Website on a .gg domain | 15% | 27% | −12% |
| Links a social account of any kind | 49% | 54% | −5% |
| Links a Facebook page | 47% | 49% | −2% |
| Links an Instagram account | 25% | 23% | +2% |
Verified from published evidence; businesses without a web presence are under-represented.
Each row is a share of all organisations counted, in the sector and island-wide — not a share of those with a website, so the rows are comparable with one another.
How it's organised
#form ⧉Legal form, ownership and size — as far as they are published
These are published far less often than a phone number. Each module below states its own coverage, and renders the gap rather than a confident number over a silent base.
Retail & Shopping organisations by legal form
A legal form on record for 86 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (28%)
SuppressedNot enough on record yet for legal forms (86 of 303). A blank here is deliberate — the module renders the gap rather than a number it cannot stand behind.
Sole traders are the systematic undercount here: a limited company publishes its form, a sole trader rarely does.
A further 25 hold something in the legal-form slot that is not a legal form — filing notes, a bare year. Those leave the denominator rather than inflating “other”.
When it is open
#hours ⧉The sector’s working week
1 in 4 of those publishing a weekly grid open on a Sunday, and 89% on a Saturday. The median week runs 48 hours.
Retail & Shopping organisations open, by day and hour
Opening hours on record for 171 of 303 Retail & Shopping organisations (56%)
On record for 56% — indicative| Day | Hour | Organisations open |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 00:00 | 1 |
| Mon | 01:00 | 1 |
| Mon | 02:00 | 1 |
| Mon | 03:00 | 1 |
| Mon | 04:00 | 1 |
| Mon | 05:00 | 2 |
| Mon | 06:00 | 1 |
| Mon | 07:00 | 26 |
| Mon | 08:00 | 66 |
| Mon | 09:00 | 137 |
| Mon | 10:00 | 154 |
| Mon | 11:00 | 155 |
| Mon | 12:00 | 154 |
| Mon | 13:00 | 150 |
| Mon | 14:00 | 149 |
| Mon | 15:00 | 148 |
| Mon | 16:00 | 134 |
| Mon | 17:00 | 64 |
| Mon | 18:00 | 20 |
| Mon | 19:00 | 17 |
| Mon | 20:00 | 6 |
| Mon | 21:00 | 3 |
| Mon | 22:00 | 3 |
| Mon | 23:00 | 2 |
| Tue | 00:00 | 0 |
| Tue | 01:00 | 0 |
| Tue | 02:00 | 0 |
| Tue | 03:00 | 0 |
| Tue | 04:00 | 0 |
| Tue | 05:00 | 1 |
| Tue | 06:00 | 1 |
| Tue | 07:00 | 26 |
| Tue | 08:00 | 64 |
| Tue | 09:00 | 141 |
| Tue | 10:00 | 159 |
| Tue | 11:00 | 161 |
| Tue | 12:00 | 162 |
| Tue | 13:00 | 158 |
| Tue | 14:00 | 160 |
| Tue | 15:00 | 159 |
| Tue | 16:00 | 139 |
| Tue | 17:00 | 66 |
| Tue | 18:00 | 23 |
| Tue | 19:00 | 17 |
| Tue | 20:00 | 5 |
| Tue | 21:00 | 2 |
| Tue | 22:00 | 2 |
| Tue | 23:00 | 1 |
| Wed | 00:00 | 0 |
| Wed | 01:00 | 0 |
| Wed | 02:00 | 0 |
| Wed | 03:00 | 0 |
| Wed | 04:00 | 0 |
| Wed | 05:00 | 1 |
| Wed | 06:00 | 1 |
| Wed | 07:00 | 26 |
| Wed | 08:00 | 65 |
| Wed | 09:00 | 142 |
| Wed | 10:00 | 161 |
| Wed | 11:00 | 162 |
| Wed | 12:00 | 162 |
| Wed | 13:00 | 156 |
| Wed | 14:00 | 154 |
| Wed | 15:00 | 154 |
| Wed | 16:00 | 137 |
| Wed | 17:00 | 66 |
| Wed | 18:00 | 21 |
| Wed | 19:00 | 16 |
| Wed | 20:00 | 5 |
| Wed | 21:00 | 2 |
| Wed | 22:00 | 2 |
| Wed | 23:00 | 1 |
| Thu | 00:00 | 0 |
| Thu | 01:00 | 0 |
| Thu | 02:00 | 0 |
| Thu | 03:00 | 0 |
| Thu | 04:00 | 0 |
| Thu | 05:00 | 1 |
| Thu | 06:00 | 1 |
| Thu | 07:00 | 26 |
| Thu | 08:00 | 64 |
| Thu | 09:00 | 140 |
| Thu | 10:00 | 159 |
| Thu | 11:00 | 161 |
| Thu | 12:00 | 162 |
| Thu | 13:00 | 156 |
| Thu | 14:00 | 158 |
| Thu | 15:00 | 157 |
| Thu | 16:00 | 139 |
| Thu | 17:00 | 64 |
| Thu | 18:00 | 23 |
| Thu | 19:00 | 18 |
| Thu | 20:00 | 6 |
| Thu | 21:00 | 2 |
| Thu | 22:00 | 2 |
| Thu | 23:00 | 1 |
| Fri | 00:00 | 0 |
| Fri | 01:00 | 0 |
| Fri | 02:00 | 0 |
| Fri | 03:00 | 0 |
| Fri | 04:00 | 0 |
| Fri | 05:00 | 1 |
| Fri | 06:00 | 1 |
| Fri | 07:00 | 26 |
| Fri | 08:00 | 65 |
| Fri | 09:00 | 144 |
| Fri | 10:00 | 162 |
| Fri | 11:00 | 164 |
| Fri | 12:00 | 164 |
| Fri | 13:00 | 160 |
| Fri | 14:00 | 161 |
| Fri | 15:00 | 157 |
| Fri | 16:00 | 131 |
| Fri | 17:00 | 64 |
| Fri | 18:00 | 21 |
| Fri | 19:00 | 16 |
| Fri | 20:00 | 5 |
| Fri | 21:00 | 3 |
| Fri | 22:00 | 3 |
| Fri | 23:00 | 1 |
| Sat | 00:00 | 0 |
| Sat | 01:00 | 0 |
| Sat | 02:00 | 0 |
| Sat | 03:00 | 0 |
| Sat | 04:00 | 0 |
| Sat | 05:00 | 1 |
| Sat | 06:00 | 1 |
| Sat | 07:00 | 10 |
| Sat | 08:00 | 50 |
| Sat | 09:00 | 125 |
| Sat | 10:00 | 149 |
| Sat | 11:00 | 150 |
| Sat | 12:00 | 141 |
| Sat | 13:00 | 132 |
| Sat | 14:00 | 130 |
| Sat | 15:00 | 124 |
| Sat | 16:00 | 102 |
| Sat | 17:00 | 58 |
| Sat | 18:00 | 18 |
| Sat | 19:00 | 13 |
| Sat | 20:00 | 5 |
| Sat | 21:00 | 3 |
| Sat | 22:00 | 3 |
| Sat | 23:00 | 1 |
| Sun | 00:00 | 0 |
| Sun | 01:00 | 0 |
| Sun | 02:00 | 0 |
| Sun | 03:00 | 0 |
| Sun | 04:00 | 0 |
| Sun | 05:00 | 1 |
| Sun | 06:00 | 1 |
| Sun | 07:00 | 3 |
| Sun | 08:00 | 10 |
| Sun | 09:00 | 25 |
| Sun | 10:00 | 42 |
| Sun | 11:00 | 43 |
| Sun | 12:00 | 43 |
| Sun | 13:00 | 41 |
| Sun | 14:00 | 41 |
| Sun | 15:00 | 40 |
| Sun | 16:00 | 26 |
| Sun | 17:00 | 14 |
| Sun | 18:00 | 9 |
| Sun | 19:00 | 8 |
| Sun | 20:00 | 5 |
| Sun | 21:00 | 2 |
| Sun | 22:00 | 2 |
| Sun | 23:00 | 1 |
Published opening hours only; a business that does not publish hours is not counted as closed. 230 hold hours of some shape, of which 171 resolve to a weekly grid and 59 are seasonal or per-site prose that must not be half-parsed.
The register is alive
#pulse ⧉The last 90 days
A census that was true in January is folklore by August. This chapter re-checks itself continuously.
Use these numbers
#use ⧉Free to reuse, with attribution
Journalists, researchers, sector bodies and officials are welcome to these figures. Every section has a stable anchor, and every count traces to published evidence. License: CC BY 4.0 — credit “Island Graph” with a link.
The two files are the whole census, not this chapter; the figures here are this sector’s slice of them. The whole census →
Denominators, briefly
#method ⧉This chapter counts over the 303 active organisations whose primary sector is Retail & Shopping — 9% of the 3,407 with a primary sector on record. The wider 405 who work in Retail & Shopping at all are counted in every sector they work in, and are used only where a sentence says “works in”.
Each module divides by what is actually on record for it: a parish for 259, a founding year for 132, a capability resolved to the graph for 193, opening hours that resolve to a weekly grid for 171. Those bases are printed under every chart, because the denominator is part of the datum.
This sector’s own coverage was measured at 80% on 3 September 2026, by capture–recapture against Google's business listings for the Bailiwick, with every organisation that was itself added from those listings left out of the comparison so the two counts stay independent. Every count above is a floor.
Counts organisations still trading that publish a founding year; older firms are likelier to do so — survivorship and reporting bias at once. Verified from published evidence; businesses without a web presence are under-represented. Capabilities as published by each organisation and resolved to the graph; a business with no capability claim is not necessarily a business that does none of these things.
Full methodology — populations, tiers, biases and how coverage is measured →