Over
one-third of UK adults now do the majority of their shopping online, while a
similar proportion split their shopping equally between online and the high
street, according to a study by broadbandchoices.co.uk.
A
survey of 2,000 UK adults conducted on behalf of the broadband comparison
website showed just how far shopping online has come in the 18 years since
internet retail giants Amazon and eBay were founded in 1995.
The survey results also show why online shopping is now rivalling
traditional shopping -one-fifth of those questioned shop online between 9pm and
midnight, demonstrating the flexibility of buying on the web compared to on the
high street.
Not only are adults in the UK embracing the flexibility of online
shopping, but the freedom of it too. While home computers are by the far the
most popular way of shopping online, one in four now shops online using their
mobile phone, meaning they can shop wherever they find themselves.
They now buy a wide variety of items online too - a far cry from the
early days of online shopping, when purchases were largely limited to books,
CDs and DVDs. Now over half buy clothes online, while a quarter do the weekly
grocery shop.
A comparison of the high street and online prices of a range of
products by broadbandchoices shows why this is, with everything from a
two-slice toaster to an Apple MacBook Pro to a Hotpoint washer/dryer found
cheaper online.
The
average amount UK adults spend online each month has doubled over the last 10
years, and one-third of those questioned said they expect to spend more online
in 2013 than in any previous year.
The survey results back-up the findings of an IAB Europe study posted
on PureNet’s blog just under a year ago, which showed internet users in the
UK made one-third of all their purchases online - the highest proportion of any
country in Europe.
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