Online shoppers override economic boom

Even though consumers are feeling the pinch of the credit crunch, online spending has increased by 19 percent in January, according to the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index.

The IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales index uses around 80 of the UK’s leading retailers in order to compile data including Asos, Comet, John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and Next.

The index confirmed that both non-food and non-store sales were 19.2 percent up in January compared to last year.

Online sales are soaring as consumers are now looking for the best deals with clothing and accessories sales at the heart of online growth with a 32 percent increase.

The clothing, footwear and accessories sector has seen the greatest growth as shoppers are turning online to look for deals in the post-Christmas period, as clothes are seasonally less volatile than the other areas, which is the main reason for the strong and progressive increase in sales.

Mike Petevinos, head of consulting for retail at Capgemini UK, has indicated that the strong performance of online retailers is due to the fact that there has been heavy investment in their infrastructure and have the necessary advantages to be able to cope in the face of increasingly tough economic conditions.

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