Apparel Online India Magazine October 1st Issue 2018 | Page 11

WORLD WRAP
month and 650 billion in commerce
sales each year, Holiday 2017 revealed
an unexpected opportunity for retailers
– the week between Christmas and
New Year’s, a.k.a. ‘Cyber Week II’.
According to a recent report by Criteo,
between December 26th (Boxing Day)
and December 30th, the US saw up to
a 46% increase in online retail sales,
which speaks volumes of the potential
of Cyber Week II. December 25th
marks the beginning of this week, a
period when shoppers flood back to
the market to take advantage of online
deals. Gift cards in hand, they’re ready
to treat themselves in the run-up to
New Year’s Day.
Digital penetration will
continue to dominate
sales
There seems to be no U-turn to the
immense popularity that online
shopping enjoys among consumers;
it is only getting bigger, by the day.
Holiday e-commerce sales are
expected to increase by 15.3%,
according to eMarketer’s new
forecast. These figures are very
impressive, though lower than the
holiday e-commerce sales in 2017
that grew by 17.8% – an increase that
the National Retail Federation (NRF)
attributes to ‘growing wages, stronger
employment and higher confidence.’
However, not all projections are
as conservative, and Deloitte
estimates that e-commerce sales
could increase between 17-22% for
the 2018 holiday season, which it
defines as the period from November
1 to January 31. Deloitte’s healthy
estimate is partly because of “solid
disposable personal income growth,”
says Daniel Bachman, Deloitte’s
US economic forecaster. He adds
that a strong labour market should
also aid retail spending, along with
elevated consumer confidence and a
stable personal savings rate of around
7%. Adding to the digital buzz is the
fact that in 2017, more than 40% of
all online retail sales in November
and December happened on mobile
phones. Significantly, December 23,
2017 (closely followed by Christmas
Eve and Christmas) was the biggest
day ever in the history of mobile
commerce in the US with 48% of all
purchases made on smartphones.
ESSENTIALS
In the last few years,
it has been observed
that October and not
November is the time
when consumers start
searching for deals.
Responding to this
trend, many retailers
from Amazon to
Walmart have started
offering deals days
and even weeks prior
to Black Friday.
Giving consumers
experience and not just
a good product is the
way forward
The real holiday season isn’t about the
gifts so much as the joy and memories
that they bring to families and friends,
so creating memories that stay for a
long time is important. Being present
for the consumer at his convenience is
gaining importance. Brands that can
connect, no matter at what time of the
day, or the week, or season or the year
stand to build a series of moments
for their customers over time – the
ones that are filled with discovery, joy,
hope, excitement, and even love. The
smartest retailers and brands are
building long-time customer loyalty by
creating the best, most personalised
customer experiences across channels
and devices. Here, being omni-channel
is a big advantage.
As the holiday season nears, retailers
are finding ways to be a part of the
experience of Christmas shopping,
and with the general mood in the US
economy being positive, it is going to
be a holiday season to watch out for!
www.apparelresources.com | OCTOBER 1-15, 2018 | Apparel Online India
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