According to a recent MasterCard survey, online shopping increased 20 per cent during the holidays. This means that an increasing number of consumers are purchasing gifts online instead of from the nearby retailer or the local shopping mall.
Thanks to the two shopping months prior to Christmas, online sales records were shattered. The survey shows that digital sales in December alone accounted for 9.9 per cent of total retail spending.
In 2015, total retail spending during the holiday season—not including gasoline—increased by only two percent. In other words, digital retailers made lots of money taking in a larger slice of the total year-end retail pie.
“When you compare the relatively slow growth of retail overall with the quick growth of online shopping, it shows the strength and growing preference of the online channel for today’s shopper,” said Sarah Quinlan, a vice-president with a MasterCard subsidiary. “With every device quickly becoming a commerce device, we’ll be watching to see if the growth of online consumers continues beyond the gift-giving season.”
