BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
The latest ONS retail sales figures released today show that the volume of online spending has increased year-on-year by 15.9 per cent and by 1.8 per cent compared to last month.
As footfall on the high street continues to drop, e-commerce has seen a continuous rise, with further spotlight drawn to shopping on mobile devices, or m-commerce. Last year one-third of online retail came from mobile. Over half of traffic to retail websites is now directed via smartphones and tablets, with mobile commerce now accounting for 36 per cent of UK e-retail sales and rising to 40 per cent for clothing and apparel websites.
The study also revealed that 80 per cent of shoppers have used a mobile phone inside of a physical store to look up product reviews, compare prices or find alternative store locations.
World Wide Technology Asynchrony Labs London general manager Kelly White commented:“Smartphones and tablets have become embedded into the modern shoppers’ psyche. We treat our mobile phones as knowledge hubs and if we see something we like, our first port of call is to get our phones out and search for it. As the market matures and competition becomes fiercer, retailers are becoming smarter in how they interact with their customers. Ultimately, it’s about capturing a personal connection with the customers, which can be enabled by smart digital tools.”
