Online spending in February reached a record high of
more than £4.2bn, equivalent to £69 per person in the UK, according
to figures from the
IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales
Index.
The results showed an overall year-on-year increase of 46%, but
sector growth was patchy. Alcohol saw a huge surge in online sales
in February, perhaps in anticipation of the tax hit in
last week's Budget.
In contrast, the previously burgeoning electrical sector saw a
drop in growth of 12.5%, compared with January's online spending.
The clothing, footwear and accessories sector also saw slower
growth in February (3.2%) after the surge in January sales, and
fewer health and beauty products were purchased online.
Anthoula Madden, vice president at Capgemini UK's consumer
products and retail team, said any
slowdown due to the credit crunch was not showing up in online
sales figures. "However, the global recession fear is a good
reminder that e-retailers cannot be complacent and need to be even
more creative to keep existing customers and attract new users,"
she said.
Jo Evans, managing director at e-tailing industry body
IMRG, said, "Price-conscious
shoppers are using the internet to both research and buy to make
their money stretch as far as possible, and online retailers are
working harder than ever to give great customer experience."
She said lots of firms had upgraded their websites since
Christmas. "The best sites are empowering shoppers with vast
amounts of detailed information they are hosting customer reviews
and providing tools to co-ordinate associated products - doing
everything they can to enable customers to be entirely comfortable
in their shopping choices."
Sector monthly change in IMRG Capgemini
online sales index
Beers, wines and sprits
+38%
Clothing, footwear and accessories
+3.2%
Electricals
-12.46%
Health and beauty
-7.9%