Online retail growth steady despite fall in average spend
Online retail sales rose 13% year-on-year in February with nearly all sectors recording double digit growth, new figures have revealed.
Despite the increase in sales, the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index found a decline in average basket values with average spend falling to its lowest level since October 2008.
However, some products benefited from Valentine’s Day with the average spend for the Gifts, Health & Beauty and Lingerie sectors rising 36%, 8% and 9% respectively.
While mobile sales in 2012 were up 304% on 2011, in February 2013 mobile sales were up 184% year-on-year. The Index said this was a “notable dip” in the level of growth over the past few months, with December 2012 up 207% and January 2013 up 193%.
Over a similar period, conversion rates through mobile devices have risen and remained consistent, hitting a high of 2.6% in January 2013 and reaching 2.3% in February.
Tina Spooner, chief information officer at IMRG said: “The mobile growth rate has slowed by around a third over the last 3 months or so compared with 2012, which is perhaps inevitable after the boom in tablet sales last year that has no doubt driven it. As the use of mobile devices as internet portals has also become widespread, it has turned mobile into a viable sales channel as evidenced by the rise in conversion rate.”
