Thursday 16 December 2010
The internet is taking over?
Some pretty striking figures today on the growth of e-commerce. 10.5% of all retail sales in November were made on-line in comparison to just 7.9% last year. This is a really huge growth, and if these sales are simply being displaced from the High Street rather than additional sales then it will spell trouble for many more high street stores. Already we have seen a shift in the nature of many high streets as book sellers, travel agents etc are in decline due to on-line alternatives, but thus far they have been replaced by cafes, restaurants & nail bars. I wonder how long this trend can continue before the effects become more damaging.
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And once again this year you can starting purchasing on Christmas day. According to 'This is Money' sales will start at 5pm on Xmas eve. Of course this year will be hard for retailers as they will have only 6 hours(not including browsing time) to trade as they are restricted by the Sunday Trading Act 1994 which is a constraint the Internet sites will be immune from.
ReplyDeleteVernon
New figures just out £6.4bn spent on-line in just November - that is £104 per person - in just one month... up 21.5% on last year. Big winners included the electricals sector (up 12%), further challenging the wisdom of Best Buys entry to the UK, and the long term viability of Comet.
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