However, from a month-on-month (MoM) perspective, the overall online market revenue rose by 1.4 per cent in June, keeping in line with the usual growth pattern for this time of the year.

Online traffic showed growth in June after seven consecutive months of decline. The traffic growth stood at 1.9 per cent YoY and increased by 5.4 per cent from May, signalling higher customer interest and positive impact of communal celebrations such as Father’s Day and Pride on trading, as per IMRG.

The arrival of a heatwave in June, marking the hottest June on record, was identified as a potential factor in the increase of traffic to retail sites and a relatively steady performance in revenue. Specific sectors such as clothing, despite a 2.3 per cent YoY drop, experienced some positive weeks in a year where growth has generally been elusive. Footwear sales saw a positive uptick, with a 0.7 per cent YoY increase.

“Following the pandemic boom, when lockdowns drove huge surges in online purchases and it appeared possible that its penetration into retail overall had rocketed forward several years, the market has actually been in decline ever since. However, while negative growth has become normalised, the trend lines are heading back toward positive growth again, likely in time for the most important time of the year for retail—Black Friday and Christmas. Provided, of course, the looming mortgage crisis doesn’t blow everything off target again,” said Andy Mulcahy, strategy and insight director, IMRG.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)