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RETAIL: Online Retailers Experience Record January Spend
Listed under: News
Published: Friday, February 22, 2008
A record £4.5billion was spent online in this year's January sales, according to a report from Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG). Figures from the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index show that growth was seen across all sectors, with the overall e-retail market up an incredible 75% compared to 2007. According to index figures, an equivalent of £74 was spent on the internet for every person in the UK in January.
“The index shows that January sales are as large a phenomenon online as they are on the high street, with the overall online market continuing to show strong growth,” says Anthoula Madden, vice president of Capgemini UK's Consumer Products and Retail Team. “The continued growth in the online sector underlines the importance to retailers of understanding and serving customers across all channels.”
We previously reported that January sales were buoyed by discount-driven purchases, and online craft retailers were as keen as others to embrace the bargain-hunting consumer. Richard Heywood, managing director of internet-based Handy Hippo, found it beneficial to offer discounts at what is usually a quiet period. “January was our busiest ever month,” he says. “There was a lot of activity. We had various promotions and offers, including multi-buy deals, discounts on discontinued lines and tie-ins on popular products to tempt people to buy a little bit more. It was much better than January last year. ”
“The index shows that January sales are as large a phenomenon online as they are on the high street, with the overall online market continuing to show strong growth,” says Anthoula Madden, vice president of Capgemini UK's Consumer Products and Retail Team. “The continued growth in the online sector underlines the importance to retailers of understanding and serving customers across all channels.”
We previously reported that January sales were buoyed by discount-driven purchases, and online craft retailers were as keen as others to embrace the bargain-hunting consumer. Richard Heywood, managing director of internet-based Handy Hippo, found it beneficial to offer discounts at what is usually a quiet period. “January was our busiest ever month,” he says. “There was a lot of activity. We had various promotions and offers, including multi-buy deals, discounts on discontinued lines and tie-ins on popular products to tempt people to buy a little bit more. It was much better than January last year. ”
