Cyber Monday could match Black Friday for e-sales as UK consumers continue to seek deals

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Nov 28, 2016

UK shoppers are expected to spend £1.1bn on goods during Cyber Monday with younger shoppers expected to increase their spending by the biggest margin. This could make it as important as Black Friday in terms of the overall value of e-tail sales.

The prediction comes as Black Friday e-sales rose, but by less than expected due to Black Friday-linked discounts being started earlier in the week and continuing through to Cyber Monday.

BHS.com said Monday that its sales value in the five days to November 25 rose 232% compared to the previous week and said a survey showed 14% of people plan to spend more on Cyber Monday too. Only 5% of people expect to spend less.

It research showed younger age groups are likely to see the biggest increase in spending on Cyber Monday, as 36% of those aged 18-24 plan to spend more on this day, compared to 5% who think they will spend less.

The corresponding figures for those aged 25-34 are 21% and 7%, but for those aged 55-64 they are just 6% and 4%.

Of the 6.9m people planning to spend more, 1.9m expect their increased expenditure to be at least £100. Some 241,000 people plan to spend at least £500 more.

On a regional basis, 20% of people in the East of England plan to spend more during Cyber Monday compared to 4% who plan to spend less, and this is followed by London where the corresponding figures are 19% and 6%.  

The survey follows news on Friday from John Lewis that Black Friday 2016 was on course to be one of its busiest shopping periods. It saw a rush between 08:00n and 08:30 as people shopped on their way into work, and it took five orders every second on johnlewis.com.

Sales through mobile phones saw a particular increase with a 21% spike between 08:00 and 09:00.

The most popular products included Marc Jacobs perfume and Sophie Conran crockery. John Lewis’s Black Friday event runs until midnight on Monday.