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Online shopping up by 75 per cent
Dare we say "the death of the high street" (again)?

By Julian Goldsmith

Published: Friday 22 February 2008

Online shopping jumped in January, with sales reaching a record high of £4.5bn in the UK over the month.

silicon.com Retail & Leisure

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Web sales increased 75 per cent year-on-year, amounting to the equivalent of £75 for every person in the UK, according to the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index.

Electricals are the favourite purchase, followed by clothing, with 38 per cent and 32 per cent share of revenues respectively.

Anthoula Madden, head of Capgemini's UK consumer products and retail team, said online growth is happening despite sluggish sales on the high street, with bricks retailing revenues increasing by only three per cent.

She said: "The results show the maturity of the online market, with consumers being more confident about buying goods online. On Christmas day, more people were online than went to church. At the same time, the economic situation has been tough and people may have held their spending back until the January sales started this year. The growth in revenues was probably driven by seasonal discounting."