IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index: Summer wardrobes go unsorted following record low growth for online clothing sales in May

Several online retail sectors saw particularly low sales growth rates, most notably clothing where growth of +7.6% was the lowest recorded for the month of May in the history of the Index. Sales growth for the gifts sector (+5.5%) was also at its lowest rate for May since 2009, while electricals actually experienced a dip in growth at -8.6%. This is the only negative year-on-year change the electrical sector has seen for the month of May since we started tracking this sector in 2003.

A clear trend shown in the results from April, the months preceding an election tend to witness a lower rate of growth than the equivalent months in non-election years. Rising costs may also be having an impact, with the latest ONS data showing that inflation grew to 2.9% in May. This will in part be due to retailers needing to pass on the higher costs of buying in products to shoppers.

Sales growth through tablet devices also recorded a record low in May – down -4.9% year-on-year, which is the lowest rate since IMRG and Capgemini started tracking this dataset in 2013. This is likely in large part due to consumers increasingly using smartphone devices for shopping activity where they would previously have used tablets. Sales growth through smartphones was up +46.2%.

Bhavesh Unadkat, principal consultant in retail customer engagement design, Capgemini: “As spending warms up with the start of summer, May and June are usually two of the strongest months of the year. With ongoing economic and political uncertainty however, this month’s results show a clear reversal of that trend. Clothing growing at 8% on the year is the lowest growth we have seen for May. Menswear and electricals are both down on the year and showing the second lowest and lowest performance since we started recording the sectors respectively. Health & Beauty has fallen by 2% year-on-year and -13% month-on-month. Month-on-month growth was the lowest on record. Retailers need to focus on maintaining and even gaining market share as consumer spending stabilizes.”

Andy Mulcahy, editor, IMRG: “Shopper confidence tends to take a hit just before an election so, while the fact we were actually having a general election may have been a surprise, a drop in online retail sales growth preceding it is not. Growth usually rises again soon afterwards – even in July 2016, the month after the Brexit vote and all the uncertainty that came with it, sales were up +18.6%. The issue this time is that we now have a hung parliament, which leaves all political options still available, including the potential for yet another general election in the near future. 2017 is certainly turning out to be a very challenging year for retailers to navigate.”

-ENDS-

About the ‘IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index’

The IMRG Capgemini Index, which was started in April 2000, tracks ‘online sales’, which we define as ‘transactions completed fully, including payment, via interactive channels’ from any location, including in-store. 

About IMRG

For over 20 years, IMRG (Interactive Media in Retail Group) has been the voice of e-retail in the UK. We are a membership community comprising businesses of all sizes – multichannel and pureplay, SME and multinational, and solution providers to industry.

We support our members through a range of activities – including market tracking and insight, benchmarking and best practice sharing. Our indexes provide in-depth intelligence on online sales, mobile sales, delivery trends and over 40 additional KPIs.

Our goal is to ensure our members have the information and resources they need to succeed in rapidly-evolving markets – both domestically and internationally.

www.imrg.org

About Capgemini

With more than 190,000 people, Capgemini is present in over 40 countries and celebrates its 50^th Anniversary year in 2017. A global leader in consulting, technology and outsourcing services, the Group reported 2016 global revenues of EUR 12.5 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business, technology and digital solutions that fit their needs, enabling them to achieve innovation and competitiveness. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business Experience^TM, and draws on Rightshore^®, its worldwide delivery model.

Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore^® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini