Christmas shopping season online

Commenting on 100 days till Christmas and the start of the Christmas shopping season online, Jason Lloyd head of broadband at moneysupermarket.com said: “On Sunday 16th September we will be 100 days from Christmas. Looking ahead to Christmas, some people may already be starting to think about where they will be buying their stocking fillers this year, with an estimated 70 per cent of internet users planning to buy Christmas gifts online.”

“Figures from IMRG show in the ten week period leading up to Christmas, spending online increases by around 50 per cent year on year, peaking at £7.66 billion last year. In 2007, IMRG expects Christmas spending online to smash the £10 billion mark for the first time. Average spending online for presents is expected to increase by 57% this year, to £376 for women and £365 for men.”

“What is fuelling this massive increase in Christmas spending online is the rapid adoption of broadband in the UK. 2007 has seen the single highest number of new broadband sign ups in one year of 5.6 million.”

“The rapid adoption and use of broadband, the expected poor weather and the resultant effect on our transport systems, coupled with the added stress of fighting on the high street to get the presents you want, is expected to bring people online to shop for Christmas in record numbers this year.”

“Our advice when shopping online is make sure you plan ahead in the same way that you shop on the high street. Create a list of things you want to buy to prevent you from Wilfing, (i.e. “What was I looking for?” – window shopping online) and to save time when shopping visit a number of comparison sites to make sure you find the best deals. Plus be aware of the delivery time online for some presents could take up to 28 days.”