• Cautious shoppers will log on early this year to avoid the potential snow delays spending £17.7 million an hour, or £424 million in total on Monday 21^st November – the busiest online shopping day of the year^[1]
   
• As manic Monday sweeps the nation, more than one third (37%) of busy Brits will carry out their online shopping whilst at work^[2] – that’s nearly 11 million of the UK’s workforce^[3]
   
• This year, online retailers will enjoy twin peaks with consumers making a second splurge on Sunday 4^th December parting with a further £418 million, followed by Monday 5^th December (£406 million)
   
• Overall, UK shoppers will spend one fifth (19.4%) of their Christmas budget online totalling £13.4bn – £1.64bn of this will be spent on mobiles. Total online spending will increase by 16.3% compared to 2010
   
• As online competition intensifies prices of the most popular gifts have fallen by 12% on average this year, with 90% of products decreasing in price by up to 30%. Just 10% of items have increased in price by up to 6%
   
• Each UK household will spend an average of £682 this Christmas split across gifts (£437), food and drink (£184), travel (£41), and decorations (£20)

EMBARGOED UNTIL Friday 18^th November 2011: With the season of goodwill fast approaching, new research from shopping comparison website Kelkoo and the Centre for Retail Research (CRR) reveals that last year’s weather conditions have created a nation of Cautious Carols when it comes to online shopping. In fact, shoppers will log on one week earlier this year to avoid potential delivery problems in the event of another winter snowfall, making Monday 21^st November the busiest online shopping day of the year. During this day, shoppers are predicted to spend £424 million equating to £17.7 million an hour or £294,500 per minute. However, retailers will enjoy twin peaks this year as the second biggest online shopping day will take place on Sunday 4^th December, when a further £418 million will be spent. 

Kelkoo’s research highlights that UK shoppers are predicted to spend nearly one fifth (19.4%) of their total Christmas budget online totalling £13.4bn. This is an increase of 16.3% compared to last year, when online spend was at £11.5bn. The rapid growth of online spending is bad news for offline retail as consumers will actually spend 2.1% less in this sector this Christmas falling by £1.2bn. 

With the busiest online day falling on a Monday, festive purchases will be made during working hours in the run up to Christmas as more than one third of shoppers (37%) admit to shopping online at work, equating to nearly 11 million^[3] of the UK’s workforce. This could be a costly exercise for employers as 26% of workers spend between 1-5 hours each week during work time shopping online and 6% (1.7 million) admit to doing it every day. 

On analysing the best online deals, web shoppers will be pleasantly surprised this year as Kelkoo’s product analysis reveals that based on a basket of 20 popular Christmas gifts, prices are on average 12% lower today than this time last year. In fact, 90% of the products listed have seen a price reduction of up to 30%. Just 10% of items have increased in price by up to 6% since Christmas 2010. 

Those making electronics purchases will be pleasantly surprised as all ten of the items examined have fallen on average by 13% since last year. The biggest bargain is the Asus EEE PC Netbook 1018P, which is now 30% cheaper than last year at £244 (down from £349.99). With the recent launch of iPhone 4S, online shoppers will be able to pick up the older 3GS 8GB model at a 17% reduction (£319 instead of £385). Those who are ‘shaken not stirred’ by Christmas shopping can pick up a James Bond DVD Collectors set at just £47.87 – a 20% reduction from last year, when it sold for £59.99. 

In the toys section all products examined by Kelkoo have seen a price drop, with an average 15% saving to be made. The Warner Brothers Lego Harry Potter Hogwarts Express is down by 18% from £72.99 to £59.97 this year, whilst a massive £44.97 saving can be made on the Scalextric Digital Pro GT Race Set, priced at £254.98 this year. Other significant price drops include; Diesel Krooley Slim Fit Jeans for men which are 23% cheaper this year (£85 down from £110) and the Philips Whole Fruit Juice Fountain which can be snapped up 19% cheaper this year (£48.45 down from £59.97). 

When it comes to individual households, consumers will spend £682 this year, up by 1% compared to last year and the focus will be on the essentials. At the top of the Christmas list are presents, nearly two thirds (64% or £437) of the festive budget will be spent on gifts, up by £20 compared to 2010. Food and drink will eat away £184 (27%) of the total budget, this is a slight increase from last year, when £178 was spent. Travelling to loved ones will take up £41 (6%) of the budget, which is the same as last year, and households will make do with last year’s decorations, spending just 3% of the budget (£20), whilst last year £36.50 was spent on sprucing up the home with tinsel and baubles. 

Chris Simpson, Chief Marketing Officer at Kelkoo, said: “With £424 million being spent on just one day, Monday 21^st November will be a hugely significant day for online retailers. Overall, the six weeks in the run up to Christmas will be a time for e-tailers to really boost their sales figures at the end of a challenging trading year. 

“The great news is that more than £13bn is going to be spent online during the festive season, which is an increase on last year, so websites will be focused on getting their pricing strategies exactly right to ensure that they attract as many of those pounds as possible. This means that there will definitely be promotions available in November and December before the start of the traditional sale period on Boxing Day. To take advantage of the bargains on offer, it’s really important to shop around online, compare prices amongst a number of retailers as there are plenty of savings to be made on gifts this year.” 

Table one – Basket of popular Christmas gifts, comparing online prices 2010 vs 2011

Source: Kelkoo.co.uk, correct as at 27^th October 2011

For further information visit: www.kelkoo.co.uk

Note to Editors:
1. Christmas figures and dates taken from the report, ‘Christmas Spending in the United Kingdom 2011’ which was commissioned by Kelkoo and conducted by the Centre for Retail Research, Nottingham in September 2011. The report looks into retail prospects for Christmas 2011 in the UK. The results are derived from published national and international retail and economic data, BRC, Euromonitor and Mintel, previous studies by CRR, and a survey of 50 large retailers across Europe. All figures are quoted in value terms wherever possible at current prices with no seasonal adjustments.

2. Online shopping figures taken from a survey of 3,000 consumers. The survey was commissioned by Kelkoo and was undertaken by One Poll from 25^th October to 4^th November 2011.

3. UK workforce figures based on ONS Labour Market Statistics: October 2011, which highlights that the employment rate was 29.1 million for June to August 2011.

• 37% of 29.1 million = 10,767,000.