Christmas comes early for online retailers

£10.1 billion was spent online in November; the highest ever monthly spend. The IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index grew 20 per cent on the same period last year, and 30 per cent on October’s performance (the highest monthly increase in 10 years).

Multi-channel retailers reported annual growth of 23 per cent, compared to the 16 per cent recorded by the online only brands. The launch of a range of budget tablet devices, as well as the release of the new iPhone and iPad, had a significant impact on the electrical sector in November, recording a month-on-month increase of 63 per cent. Home and garden also recorded a particularly strong month, with annual like-for-like growth reaching 42 per cent.

The Index revealed that conversion rates for e-retail as a whole continue to see an upward trend, with 5.24 per cent recorded in November, the highest conversion rate since April 2009. Chris Webster, VP, head of retail consulting and technology at Capgemini, says: “These results are particularly strong and give a clear indication of what we can expect to see during the peak shopping weeks in December. E-retail continues to be the growth engine of an otherwise struggling retail sector and as online spending exceeds £10 billion in one month, we can see just how integral the online and mobile channels have become to the shopping experience. With the introduction of great value tablet devices offering better accessibility than ever before, the sector is only set to rocket in 2014.”

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