According to the latest figures from the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index the online retail sector is off to a flying start this year, recording a 15% growth YoY (excluding travel), more than double to that of 7% in January 2015.
It was thought last year’s performance was as a result of the Black Friday effect, which suggest last year’s growth was down to other factors.
The positive performance was seen across many sectors. Clothing and Electrical items both saw a 15% YoY growth, the highest annual growth for the Electrical sector since November 2014. Travel also saw a growth of 11% on the same period last year.
Mobile continues to become more important. Retailers are staring to focus more here and improve the experience on these devices. Sales made through tablets were up by 13%, while sales via smartphones grew by 96%.
“The divergence between the use of mobile devices is becoming increasingly apparent – growth rates via smartphones surged 96% year-on-year, with confidence in using them for shopping most likely boosted by the design shift toward larger screens, together with improved retailer mobile sites. Conversely, growth in sales completed on tablet devices fell below the overall online growth rate for the first time since we started tracking it – up 13% from January last year” said Tina Spooner, chief information officer IMRG.
The IMRG Capgemini Index, tracks ‘online sales’, which they define as ‘transactions completed fully, including payment, via interactive channels’ from any location, including in-store.
