Survey Finds Online Shopping Has Passed Peak Use as Lockdown Eases

Friday, June 19, 2020 - 09:06 by David Aiken

While safe shopping online is still more popular than usual amongst consumers in the UK due to habits formed by the coronavirus lockdown, it seems that as the high street begins to open up again there has been a dip in e-commerce activity.

This is according to the results of a study conducted by DISQO, which revealed that June has seen a drop-off in online purchases.

Internet Retailing reports that a fifth of people in the UK carry out more than three-quarters of their retail purchases online, showing that there is a hardcore audience for this kind of service. Overall an impressive 40 per cent of purchases were made online on average in the past week, down from 44 per cent during the peak of the lockdown.

A third of consumers in the UK are still primarily focusing on real-world outlets to fulfil the majority of their shopping needs, while just a tenth do not make any kind of use of e-commerce sites.

Half of people questioned said that they had collected a takeaway order in person, and around a fifth said that they had purchased groceries online for home delivery, showing that there are different trends and habits at play even in amongst those who are most attuned to the benefits of safe shopping online.

Interestingly, the study found that Brits aged between 55 and 64 were least likely to have purchased groceries online, with just 17 per cent of respondents in this age group doing so. This rises to 25 per cent amongst those aged 35 to 44.

Physical stores reopening in mid-June has given consumers the opportunity to support their high street retailers after months of minimal trading, although the allure of online shopping is now known to even more people.