Maybe its the hustle and bustle of modern society that gives us less time to spend looking around high street stores at Christmas, or maybe we are just getting fed up of the British weather. For whatever reason, more people are going online to buy presents for family and friends this Christmas holiday.
In the run up to this Christmas, many sources have reported that 2005 will be the biggest yet for online shopping. According to the IMRG, online shopping was expected to rise between 23% and 40% up to £5 billion. High Street sales over the same period are expected at £75 million.
According to the Times, the fastest growing area of sales on the internet are services such as holidays and insurance, with online shoppers willing to purchase an item without having to see the product or services in the flesh.
But beware all you online shopping gurus. As always, Christmas greetings go hand-in-hand with beverage consumption, and new research has found that internet users are more likely to buy from an online store if they've had a few. Customer experience firm Conchago reports that a growing number of British internet users are shopping online after one too many drinks, resulting in the growth of a syndrome known as BLOTO (Buying Loads of Tat Online). See Netimperative for more details.
A number of market research firms have predicted that online shopping and retail sales will triple to around £19 million within four years and with the growth of the internet and online shopping as they currently stand, many wouldn't disagree.
