Did you enjoy an online Christmas?
Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG) has today revealed the extent to which UK consumers moved online over the Christmas period. They report that on 25 December alone UK retailers spent over £102 million online which was a 21% increase on Christmas Day 2007. Average spending per customer was up from £19.09 to £28.60 which is a significant increase. So what does this all mean for the future?
As we have commented upon in the past the problems on the UK high street and the issue of confidence in many U.K.'s retail companies saw more and more people move online. Promotions, discounts and free postage to their door saw more and more people place their faith in the World Wide Web much to the benefit of this particular area of the market. In the past we have seen short-term spikes in such spending patterns but many of these have failed to follow through until now.
There is a feeling that the online sector is set to show significant growth in the short, medium and longer term placing more and more pressure on traditional UK retailers who are facing pricing pressure from numerous quarters. Quite how they will respond to the online threat remains to be seen but we could see a significant change in the UK retail landscape.
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