Post-Christmas deal seeking by price-sensitive shoppers saw a boost to web revenues during the week after Christmas, with Boxing Day delivering a significant uptick in ecommerce performance, according to the latest data from Wunderkind.
Original data from Wunderkind’s Marketing Pulse, which analysed over 91.2million shopping journeys, revealed that digital sales rose +9.52% week-on-week (w/c 25 Dec 2023 vs w/c 18 Dec 2023), as shoppers held out for access to post-Christmas discounts. Boxing Day delivered a significant increase to web revenues, rising +51% on 26 Dec 2023 compared to the week prior.
Boxing Day ecommerce takings were also up +39% year-on-year, prompted by ongoing price- and promotions sensitivity among shoppers squeezed by cost-of-living pressures. UK consumers were tipped to spend £3.7billion on ‘deep discounts’ on Boxing Day, with fashion items proving the most popular category. The higher levels of online purchasing may also have been further bolstered as many retailers, including M&S, John Lewis and Next, chose to keep retail stores closed on Boxing Day to give staff an extra day to spend with family.
Wulfric Light-Wilkinson, GM International at Wunderkind, commented: “With consumers focused on making their budgets work as hard as possible this year, the data shows that many shoppers held off on Christmas spending in order to make the most of Boxing Day discounts. On the flip-side, retailers will have been managing a fine balancing act between meeting consumer demand for deals, driving stock sell-through, and maintaining margins. To ensure the value from this sales boost continues into 2024, it’s vital that retailers continue to engage these consumers through personalised messaging year-round. Re-engaging lapsed customers – including the ‘one hit wonders’ who purchase once, often during a sale period, and then vanish – is important, and, given rising new customer acquisition costs, may be a more efficient use of marketing spend.”
This year, Christmas Day also saw a significant rise in online shopping, with web revenues up +123% year-on-year, as consumers took advantage of early access Boxing Day sales, according to Wunderkind’s data. This follows a poll by Barclays which showed that 23% of UK consumers planned to start shopping the sales on Christmas Eve, and a further 17% intended to bargain hunt on Christmas Day.
