Germans Shop for Xmas on the Net

According to latest data from GfK, consumers in Germany ordered online goods worth a total of EUR 942 million during the Christmas period, representing a sales increase of 63% compared to the same period the previous year.

These sales were generated by 6.6 million online buyers, a figure which has itself risen by 43%. This rise corresponds to the increase in Internet users in Germany during this period. The sales increase, which is 20 percentage points higher at a consistent purchasing frequency, can therefore be attributed to a higher total spend per online purchase.

Each online buyer made an average of two online purchases at Christmas and spent an average of EUR 75 across all product groups.

The most popular online Christmas purchases of 2001 were digital cameras and camcorders, consumer electronics and DIY products. Sales of mobile phones decreased slightly following their huge sales increases the Christmas before.

These findings, recorded by GfK Web*Scope, are based on continuous, written surveys carried out partly online and partly offline of a random sample of 10,000 Internet users. GfK Panel Services Consumer Research uses GfK Web*Scope to communicate ongoing data about the online purchasing behaviour of private consumers.

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

• GfK Germany
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