​Clothing is the premier purchase on mobile, finds report

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jun 20, 2016

Almost a quarter of the UK population, or 23%, have bought clothes on mobile devices, according to a new UK-wide consumer study by ICM for Criteo.

The report ‘A Portrait of Mobile Performance: Measuring Pleasure in UK Mobile Shopping’ revealed that 2.5 million Brits are buying on their mobile phone every day as they enjoy the benefits of ecommerce such as convenience.

Social connections are also driving these purchases. Heavy social media users are the biggest mobile shoppers in the UK, says ICM, especially those aged between 18 and 34 years old. The biggest mobile buyers are heavy Snapchat (64% have bought on mobile) and Instagram (56%) users. Daily users of the latter are 113% more likely to buy clothes on mobile.

After fashion, music & film is the second best performing category with 16% of the people saying they have bought these items online, followed by health and beauty products (14%).

Online purchases happen mostly in front of the TV (33% of UK consumers) or in bed at night (27%).

“Smartphones have transformed the retail industry in the UK. Our mobile is always by our side, meaning it is the one consistent factor in all elements of the online and offline shopping experience today” said ‎Jason Morse, Vice President, Mobile Products at Criteo. “We can now see that shopping on mobile is becoming a daily routine for large sections of the population, suggesting that smartphones are creating greater emotional ties behind consumer and brand. In addition, these findings show that browsing Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest in front of the TV at night is driving the growth of mobile commerce, just as much as mobile’s innate portability.”