We have tales of innovation in today’s Internet Retailing newsletter, where we report both on House of Fraser’s move to introduce new delivery concepts and Tesco’s transactional kiosks, where shoppers can browse and buy F&F clothing online from the store.
It’s innovation of this kind that is helping to drive the fast growth in online sales recorded by this week’s ONS figures, which in itself must be contributing to more buoyant overall retail sales. In the light of today’s news from House of Fraser, it’s also interesting that those ONS figures showed a 35% boost to online department store sales over the last year. Find out more in our newsletter stories below, and read on, too, for news of how to take part in our new international research project, with the chance of winning a free ticket to the Internet Retailing Conference 2013 in October.
In today’s newsletter we also report on fast growth online and offline at Sports Direct, on eBay’s second quarter results, where growth in mobile was a standout factor. Our guest comment comes from Lovehoney co-founder Richard Longhurst, who considers the role of the online community in ecommerce.
International research project
Internet Retailing’s latest research project focuses on international markets, where so many UK retailers are now looking for growth. But while overseas markets can prove a route to fast growth in sales, it requires no little preparation and hard work in order to move along that path.
Exactly what that hard work and preparation entails is now under examination in our latest research project. Our analysis will be published in September as a special report, along with a half day seminar revealing further insight. We’re inviting readers to take a few moments to share their expertise in our research project. Everyone who takes part will be entered into a draw to win a free delegate pass to the Internet Retailing Conference 2013, to be held in London in October. Click here to take the survey and receive a copy of the published results. Click here for more information on the annual conference.
Webinars
We have an upcoming webinar to let you know about today.
On Tuesday August 13, Jim Davidson, manager of marketing research at Bronto, joins us for Bam! Ka-Pow! Power-packing your post-purchase programs. During the event, to be held at 2pm, he will be considering how post-purchase email marketing can help to ensure long-term customer loyalty and repeat sales. It’s an under-used part of the customer lifecycle, he says, that can give a strong boost to online sales and conversion by talking directly to the multi-device, multi-tasking consumer. Find out more on the Bronto webinar page, where you can also register for free.
More information about our webinar programme is available here.
Events
We’re also excited to have the first details of the 8th Internet Retailing Conference. The event will be held on October 16 in London. Keynote speakers will include Sir Stuart Rose, chairman of Ocado and Dressipi, and Laura Wade-Geary, executive director, multichannel ecommerce, Marks & Spencer. For more details and early bird supersaver registration, visit
www.internetretailingconference.com.
Today’s stories
UK shoppers spent 18.3% more online in June, while department store online sales grew by 35%
Tesco trials new transactional kiosks to extend the F+F range beyond the store
eBay says mobile continues as fast driver of growth
GUEST COMMENT If Lovehoney was a person it would give up its seat on a bus for an old lady
Sports Direct reports online growth topping 50%
House of Fraser broadens delivery options to suit time-pressed consumers
