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40% Consumers to Christmas Shop on Mobile - Fleximize

40% of Consumers to Christmas Shop on Mobile

People also plan to spend more time shopping online due to wider choice

12th November 2015

By Elma Glasgow

M-commerce continues to gain momentum with 40% of consumers planning to do their Christmas shopping on mobile devices.

Research from Webloyalty also reveals that shoppers will spend 10 hours browsing for and buying presents and festive food online – that's an increase from 9 hours in 2014.

Be mobile-friendly

The increase in online time suggests more product choice, and potentially improved retailer mobile sites and apps, giving shoppers a smoother shopping experience.

Managing Director of Webloyalty, Northern Europe, Guy Chiswick, emphasised the importance of retailers developing mobile-friendly sites. He said:

Retailers need to make sure their sites are optimised for mobile, or they’ll miss out. Only 15% of consumers will solely buy their gifts in store. This move to mobile doesn’t mean time saved for shoppers though. We’re spending more time browsing online before we buy. Guy Chiswick, Webloyalty

Billions to be spent online

The survey of 2,000 people by the e-commerce business, also reveals that, overall, the festive season is set to be a retail bonanza with shoppers shelling out a very grand total of £16.5 billion. That's an average of £442 for each consumer and a rise of 2.5% compared to 2014.

Signs of improvements in the economy are reflected in 17.6% of consumers planning to spend more on presents for loved ones this year – and average £282.70 each in fact.

Tesco is top choice

Tesco's recent troubles seem to have left consumer loyalty untouched this Yule time, as the majority (34.5%) plan to shop there this year. Sainsbury's ranks as the second most popular Christmas shop (29.3%), and almost a quarter (24.5%) will be heading to no-frills retailer, Aldi.

Of course, Christmas isn't celebrated by everyone in the UK for many reasons; 5.5% of people will not be spending anything at all.