Online holiday shopping sets new record

[December 20th 2000]

Nielsen//NetRatings reports a spike in holiday shopping during the second week in December. The Nielsen//NetRatings Holiday E-Commerce Index, which measures home and work Web shopping in eight product categories, jumped 10 percent over the prior week and 78 percent since the beginning of this year's holiday shopping season. While the 1999 season peaked with a 40 percent growth in the number of home shoppers, this year the number of shoppers has already risen 53 percent, setting a new record for the holiday season.

"Online holiday shopping got off to a late start this year, but has recovered with strong and consistent growth," said Sean Kaldor, vice president of eCommerce at NetRatings. "In the last five weeks, holiday shopping growth has consistently exceeded last year's results and the trend indicates that there is at least one more week of favorable growth ahead."

A key attraction to shoppers this holiday season is established brick and mortar retailers who have moved online. Brick and mortar sites have grown 103 percent since the beginning of the season, gaining ground on pure-play e-tailers, which are up 77 percent.

"Brick and mortar sites are tapping into their large, established customer bases and leveraging their enormous promotional budgets to drive millions of shoppers online," added Kaldor. "While late to e-commerce, these sites are winning their fare share of visitors and dollars."

Links
Nielsen//NetRatings		http://www.nielsen-netratings.com