One in five Argos sales are now made via mobile devices, parent company the Home Retail Group said this week.
Mobile commerce grew by 56% during the year to represent 21% of total Argos sales. Internet sales, meanwhile, accounted for 42% of Argos sales over the period. But, strikingly, online growth was more modest, growing in line with the 4.8% rise in total sales to £868m over the 13 weeks to May 31, while like-for-like sales growth grew by 4.9%.
John Walden, chief executive of Home Retail Group, said like-for-like sales rises at both Argos and sister company Homebase (£445m, +5.5% total sales, +7.9% like-for-like) represented a “good start to the year.”
He said: “This growth was aided by a strong performance in seasonal products in both businesses, due to better weather overall versus the comparable period last year.
“In additional to this strong performance in seasonal products, Argos delivered further sales growth in electrical products while Homebase achieved growth in sales of big ticket products.”
But the market for one mobile device, the tablet, may be reaching maturity, at least for the moment. A “market-driven decline in tablets,” said the results, had been offset by growth in sales in video gaming and in TVs.
