Retail Information on Hand

The thirteenth edition of the Retail Pocket Book, a joint venture between AC Nielsen and WARC, has just been published, offering as usual a handy goldmine of quick information and facts on the retail sector, both in the UK and abroad.

According to the 2002 edition, about 1.6 million people now use the Internet for grocery shopping. Approaching 90% of shoppers are now happy to use credit/debit cards for online purchases and, overall, people are very satisfied with all aspects of the online service - from price and speed of delivery to fraud guarantee.

Of those households purchasing online, the majority (54.1%) have over 3 members and 54.5% of housewives work full time. Those predominantly interested in online shopping are the larger, busier households who find it more convenient and less time consuming than getting to the shops, especially in light of the fact that main shoppers made an average of 59 grocery shopping trips in 2000. When it comes to choosing a grocery shop, residents in the UK believe that good value for money (33.1%) followed by a good range of products (20.6%) are the most important factors.

Despite totalling 42 general shopping trips over the whole year, Britain lags far behind our European counterparts such as Italy (269) and Germany (228).

For more information, visit www.warc.com

All articles 2006-22 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.