Online Clothing Sales Grew 35 Percent During the 2002 Holiday Shopping Season
Online clothing sales experienced a 6 percent increase during the 2002 holiday shopping season to 35 percent, according to data from Retail Forward, registering a 13-point jump from the 2000 holiday season. This two-year surge is second only to the online purchases of DVDs (8 percent in 2000 rising to 23 percent in 2002). But with The NPD Group, Inc. reporting that 76 percent of consumers are "being careful" about spending on discretionary products and services, online clothing sales could suffer through the second quarter of 2003, but big-ticket items are likely to be hit harder. According to the responses of more that 2,500 individuals in early March 2003, 41 percent plan to spend less than usual in March, April and May, 14 percent are planning to spend more than usual, and 45 percent plan to spend about the same as usual. Offline clothing retailers have also fared well, with big revenue increases noted by BIGResearch in comparisons from March 2002 to March 2003. BIGResearch also found that apparel bargain-hunters were more prevalent this year than in 2003. Nearly one-quarter (23.5 percent) of consumers only bought clothing items that were on sale — compared to 15.7 percent in March 2002.
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