UK online retail sales recorded strong double-digit, year-on-year growth in June and during the second quarter of 2015, recovering from a slow start to the year, with the warm weather giving a boost to the clothing sector, according to the British e-commerce association IMRG.
Last month, e-retail sales growth in the UK reached 18% year-on-year – the highest growth rate recorded so far this year. In Q2 2015, sales also showed strong year-on-year growth of 14% which doubles the fairly low 7% increase seen in Q1 (January-March), the latest figures from the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index revealed.
In a monthly comparison with May, UK online retail sales showed a 2.7% increase, which also marks the strongest June month-on-month growth since June 2003, reflecting the ongoing increase in UK consumer confidence.
For the first half of 2015, the total growth in the British online sales reached 11%, supported by a much improved second quarter of the year.
The index in June was boosted by a strong performance in a number of key sectors. The clothing sector reached 18% growth which is its highest rate since November 2014. The travel sector, which has performed consistently well throughout 2015, was up 25% – its highest growth this year and its third highest annual growth since the index began recording travel in December 2009.
The m-commerce sector which comprises sales via smartphones or tablet devices recorded a spectacular 57% increase last month, compared to June 2014. Split by device, sales on smartphones outweighed tablets by far, reporting a growth rate which more than doubled that on tablet devices during the first half of 2015 (January-June).
The Index also revealed the growing disparity between online-only and multichannel retailers who have both an online and a physical presence. In June, growth for online-only sales reached just 13% year-on-year, compared to 21% for multichannel retailers.
Tina Spooner, chief information officer, IMRG, said: “During the first quarter of this year, we were speculating as to whether online retail was entering a new phase of lower growth rates – with Q1 up just 7% on the same period in 2014. However, in Q2 sales growth has jumped up to 14% on that recorded in Q2 2014 – which is all the more interesting as this period included a highly uncertain general election.
“June brought the strongest performance of the year so far, no doubt buoyed by the consistent summer weather which also saw the highest growth for the clothing sector so far in 2015. It may be that the slowdown we recorded during Q1 was a blip caused by a number of factors and actually consumer confidence has risen sufficiently to keep online sales growth at this higher rate throughout the summer period and moving into peak.”
Steve Hewett, Head of Retail Customer Engagement and Loyalty, Capgemini Consulting, commented: “The significant growth in the market will be very reassuring to UK retailers who have thus far experienced a fairly turbulent 2015. With a relatively settled post-election economy, consumer confidence should remain high and we can look forward to a solid H2.”
“I’m particularly interested to see the impact click and collect services have had on the performance of multichannel retailers compared to their online only counterparts. Capturing their customer’s delivery needs has helped build a stronger connection between retailer and consumer, which is ultimately being reflected at the cash register. It will be key for the online community to capitalise on the current consumer confidence and find a way to build the same level of connection,” he added.
