European Christmas Online Retail To Hit €9bn, Says Forrester
European consumers will spend â‚Ź9 billion online on this year’s Christmas shopping, almost as much as US consumers, according to a new report by Forrester Research.
Forty percent of Europeans shop online, but two countries make up almost two-thirds of all online holiday sales in Europe – the UK and Germany. These two countries have a higher internet shopper penetration than the US and a greater spend per purchase than other Europeans.
The UK is forecast by Forrester to spend â‚Ź3.2 billion (£2.2 billion) in holiday sales – 36% of Europe’s total online Christmas sales. Germany follows with 27% or â‚Ź2.4 billion. Travel will account for the greatest expenditure as consumers take advantage of cheap fares, says the report.
| Projected European Online Christmas Retail Sales 2003 | ||
| Spend (â‚Źm) | Share In Europe (%) | |
| UK | 3,215 | 35.7 |
| Germany | 2,452 | 27.2 |
| France | 667 | 7.4 |
| Switzerland | 451 | 5.0 |
| Netherlands | 448 | 5.0 |
| Sweden | 290 | 3.2 |
| Austria | 252 | 2.8 |
| Italy | 248 | 2.7 |
| Belgium | 234 | 2.6 |
| Denmark | 168 | 1.9 |
| Finland | 163 | 1.8 |
| Norway | 147 | 1.6 |
| Spain | 130 | 1.4 |
| Ireland | 73 | 0.8 |
| Portugal | 31 | 0.3 |
| Greece | 29 | 0.3 |
| Luxembourg | 12 | 0.1 |
| Source: Forrester Research, November 2003 | ||
Separate forecasts from the Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG) predict that the UK’s online spend during November and December will be £3.3 billion (see UK Online Retail Will Double To £3.3bn This Christmas, Says IMRG).