Tech savvy shoppers splash out in August

UK consumers spent £9.8 billion online in August as a major heatwave hit the UK contributing to strong demand for summer clothing, according to the IMRG Campgemini eRetail Sales Index.

This represented a 16% year-on-year increase, compared with August 2015, when the Index recorded a growth of just 5%.

The clothing sector experienced a 20% increase year-on-year in August, while accessories grew by 48%. Last month was also strong for the lingerie sector which grew 44% on last year.

Tina Spooner, Chief Information Officer, at IMRG: “The solid performance in online sales continued during August, resulting in overall growth year-to-date reaching 15%, which is ahead of our growth forecast for 2016. Following the initial turbulence reported by some retailers during the week following the EU referendum vote, the latest Index results suggest e-retailers had a successful summer, with many reporting normal trading patterns for this time of year. It appears the weak pound has helped boost international sales for some merchants who have reported buoyant sales from customers outside the UK, with countries within the Eurozone showing particularly strong growth.”

The Index also revealed that smartphone penetration hit a significant milestone with 49.5% of all online sales made via a mobile device. This is a 18.5% increase on August 2015. In contrast, sales completed on tablets fell from 69% last year to 50.5% in August.

“Mobile continues to impress with a near even split between traffic from mobile and desktop. However, the more interesting element is how conversion from smartphones continue to increase, it was under 1% last year and is now nearly 2%. Soon it will double again, and if retailers can hold their traffic and drive that level of conversion then it will not be long before mobile overtakes desktop in online sales. As always, a seamless cross-channel and device journey is key to ensure market share gains are driven at a customer level and not just isolated to one channel,” commented Bhavesh Unadkat, Management Consultant in Retail Customer Engagement Design, Capgemini.

Additionally, online retailers reported a 22% annual growth, outperforming their multichannel counterparts, which grew just 13%.

Tech savvy shoppers splash out in August

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