Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
Online sales of non-food products grew 16% in November compared with the year-ago period – with homewares performing strongly.
Homewares improved significantly over the previous month, in terms of growth and contribution, according to the latest monitor from The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG. At 18.8%, the category recorded its highest ever penetration rate, beating its previous record of 18.7% in January.
In November, online sales represented 19.9% of total non-food sales overall. BRC director general Helen Dickinson said: “We said last month more of us will be clicking into Christmas than ever before this year, and November fuels that trend further, setting new records both for growth and penetration of non-food sales. November’s growth rate is the best so far this year and the best in three years if you exclude the months of December.
“The proportion of goods bought online increased across all categories during the month. These figures highlight that, while online may have come of age last Christmas, this year it’s cementing its position as a popular choice at all stages of the customer journey.”
KPMG Head of Retail David McCorquodale said: “Retailers’ digital channels have proved to be a major pillar of their sales strategy this year, with one in five products bought online this Christmas. With multi-channel retailing now firmly established, what lies ahead for the retailer is considerable investment in digital analytics and logistics to improve personalisation and meet the increasing demands of the consumer.”
