A Steady Growth Continues in Online Retail Searches

According to the Online Retail Monitor compiled by Google and British Retail Consortium (BRC). Greater London experienced highest share of UK retail searches, at 27% which is followed by the Northern England and Yorkshire with 23%. Austria demonstrated the strongest growth for UK retailers from the EU, reporting a 28% increase in the last three months to September 30.

In mean time beauty was the most searched for sector by non-EU overseas consumers on all devices, reporting a growth of 21% during the same quarter. It has remained as the most popular sector for EU consumers on all devices, increasing by 38%.

According to BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson “The third quarter of 2017 saw higher volumes of online browsing activity, with smartphones driving the lion’s share of growth,”

It has been consistent with the double digit growth seen in the non-food sales over the past couple of months, with online penetration reaching its highest rate in the month of September since January.

The relentless march of mobile activity shows the significant innovation and investment from retailers to make their offer to on-the-go customers ever more convenient.

The other brands like beauty and clothing continue to attract the most interest from both overseas and UK consumers, which has kept the categories firmly at the top of the growth rankings.

At home, festivities over the summer months and into autumn, spurred a flurry of online searches for clothing with wedding dresses and Halloween outfits were high up on the shopping agenda.

The most significant searches for UK brands came from consumers in the Baltic and Balkan states. The extension of the internet access in rapidly developing countries give retailers with an ideal opportunity to expand their outreach and boost their sales overseas.