Online shoppers to spend twice as much on mobile this Christmas

This follows a year of consistently strong growth for mobile, with sales through the channel currently accounting for 27% of online retail sales and 38% of retail site visits.

For the first time, this Christmas IMRG and Capgemini are now able to report on how the sales will be distributed over device types.

The split is currently running at 80 / 20 between tablets and smartphones, which means that the forecast spend by device is £2.3bn and £600m respectively.

Tina Spooner, Chief Information Officer at IMRG: “Mobile devices have fundamentally altered the way that customers engage with brands. The nature of these devices means that there is a wide range of potential engagement contexts, but the major shift really has been toward a uniquely leisurely browsing type of behaviour in front of the TV. The fact that m-retail spend is double that recorded in December 2012 demonstrates just how much this approach to shopping has taken hold this year.”

Chris Webster, VP, Head of Retail Consulting and Technology at Capgemini: “If we thought that the first decade of the 21st century had turned the world of retail upside down, the second decade is likely to feel that we are inside a tumble dryer.

“The growth of m-Retail, driven first by tablet devices but now increasingly by smartphones, is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to mobile adoption. The use of smartphones to deliver truly personal, relevant customer experiences which reflect the location and context of what we, the customer, are doing will completely change how we interact with retailers. We had better hang on to our smartphones as it is going to be a bumpy ride.”

– ENDS –

About IMRG

IMRG (Interactive Media in Retail Group) is the UK’s industry association for e-retail. Formed in 1990, IMRG is setting and maintaining pragmatic and robust e-retail standards to enable fast-track industry growth, and facilitates its community of members with practical help, information, tools, guidance and networking. The strength of IMRG is the collective and cooperative power of its members. For more information please visit http://www.imrg.org/ or email membership@imrg.org

About Capgemini

With more than 130,000 people in 44 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2012 global revenues of EUR 10.3 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organisation, 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.uk.capgemini.com

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini