If you’re sick of the sound of Vuvuzela’s blasting out from every television set in the vicinity and are fed up of the World Cup already, at least online retailers have something to be happy about.
According to the latest IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index, the World Cup has boosted online shopping in the UK to its highest level in 2 years as everyone prepares for a summer of football on the box.
More people are choosing to use their laptops and computers to fill virtual baskets instead of real ones causing online sales to jump up by 22 percent last month compared to the same period last year and to rise by 3 percent from April to May this year.
Last month alone shoppers spent a staggering £4.5 billion online, which according to the Sales Index equates to around £73 per person in the UK.
Online alcohol sales were up by 23 percent, electrical gadgets by 13 percent and partly as a result of the warmer weather during the latter part of May, online clothing sales were up by 32 percent.
“Throughout the history of the index we have seen a noticeable rise in sales of certain goods whenever there is a major sports tournament on” said Capgemini spokesperson Chris Webster.
“This year’s World Cup is no exception, with online retail as a whole growing by the highest level in two years and sectors such as clothing, alcohol and electricals rising especially rapidly.
“It’s good to see that consumers’ spirits haven’t been dampened by concerns over Government spending cuts, and savvy retailers will have embraced the opportunity to draw in new customers with marketing and price incentives” said Webster.
IMRG spokeswoman Tina Spooner said: “The fine weather in late May and the World Cup build-up appear to have had a positive impact for e-retailers.
“In the year to date, the UK e-retail market has grown 14 per cent, which is in line with our predictions for this year
“With recent research suggesting that over half of consumers believe the economy is now recovering, it is evident that e-retailers have already started to benefit from an increase in consumer spending.”
The Index didn’t mention those annoying plastic horns but online retailer Amazon claim sales of the Vuvuzela have rocketed by 1000 percent and apparently supermarket chain Sainsbury’s is selling one of them every 2 seconds.
Not surprisingly, sales of earplugs have also surged.
