Online retail sales 'rise in February'

11:25 11th March 2010

Interest in the online retail market rose during February, according to new figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

The body's latest Retail Sales Monitor revealed that non-food non-store sales were 15.5 per cent higher during the month than a year ago, which may have been linked to the cold weather seen over the period.

In news which may interest companies in Lancashire heading online, the figure marked a slight rise on the statistic of 14.6 per cent recorded in January.

Sharon Hardiman, head of non-store retailing at the BRC, said the research represented good growth and claimed the rise was partly influenced by catch-up sales held over from the previous month.

"Promotions and clearances helped but also the range of goods and retailers available online is still expanding and customers are steadily becoming more comfortable with this way of shopping," she added.

The internet may not be immune from uncertainty in the market, she suggested, but claimed its "continuing march forward" is outweighing any negative effects.

Recent research from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills revealed that two-thirds of consumers are less likely to return goods they have bought online.

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