By Nancy Pierri
Infographics by Jacob Stoller
Online shopping increases strongly during the holiday season, with Adobe reporting that retailers achieved $91.7 billion in digital sales, representing an 11 per cent increase in 2017.The convenience of online shopping is consuming holiday sales while mall sales continue to decrease, according to analytic tracking companies.
The rapid growth in online spending reflects a long-term shift in which shoppers are choosing the convenience of swiping, tapping and clicking over a trip to the mall.
According to Mintel research holiday shopping in Canada, nearly half (48%) of Canadians save their holiday purchases for special event days such as Black Friday or Cyber Monday.
“I’d definitely consider myself an avid online shopper. There’s always a wider selection, better prices, and most importantly it makes the stress of holiday shopping much more convenient,” said Julia Loschiavo, first-year Ryerson University RTA student.
“When days like Black Friday and Cyber Monday come around, it’s easier to just shop from my phone and get exactly what I want rather than racing towards the nearest mall.”
In-store analytics tracker RetailNext reported in 2017 that mall traffic sank 12.3 percent in November and December, while sales dropped 9.9 percent.
“I’ve worked retail for the past four years and even though I do see busy days during the holiday season, it’s nothing compared to when I first started. The lines are shorter, fewer employees are booked for shifts and overall it’s pretty manageable,” said Ryan Love, part-time Ralph Lauren employee.
Adobe reports that mobile devices, which include tablets and smartphones, accounted for 50 percent of visits to retailers’ websites during the holidays. Purchases made on these gadgets added up to $28.43 billion in revenue, a 23 per cent increase.
While consumers for years have been showing a growing willingness to shop on their phones, the holiday season puts into sharp perspective just how integral the small screen has become in the buying experience.
Retail e-commerce sales of physical goods are projected to continue to grow to approximately 71.4 billion Canadian dollars in 2022.
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