Fashion discounts in the summer sales gave a boost to ecommerce during June. Online sales grew by 17.6 per cent compared to the same month last year, according to new figures from the British Retail Consortium.
The BRC-KPMG Online Retail Sales Monitor for June 2015 found ecommerce accounted for 18.4 per cent of total UK retail sales during the month.
The figures contrast with June 2014, when internet sales had grown by 10.6 per cent, and reflect the best online performance, said the BRC, since August 2014. During June online sales outperformed both the three-month and 12-month averages of 14.6 per cent and 12.6 per cent respectively. In the previous month of May, ecommerce sales grew at a lower rate, at 9.9 per cent.
The fastest growth came in the clothing and footwear categories, while sellers of toys and baby equipment reported their best online growth since January.
Helen Dickinson, director general of the British Retail Consortium said, “Online retail sales have experienced the best growth since August 2014, largely driven by fashion promotions. For retailers, online is an increasingly useful tool to reach customers selectively and showcase their offer. Online sales strength is also shown in the fact its contribution to three month non-food sales growth has reached its highest proportion since December 2013. This highlights the variety of digitally-focused roles in the retail industry. It also shows the increasing demand for skilled people to develop sophisticated online operations and a seamless connection between physical and digital space.”
Online contributed 2.1 percentage points to overall sales growth in UK non-food retail sales during June. Overall, total UK retail sales grew by 2.9 per cent, compared to a 0.6 per cent rise in June 2014. They were up by 1.8 per cent on a like-for-like basis; last June they fell by 0.8 per cent.
Food sales grew in June for the seventh month in a row, meanwhile. Joanne Denney-Finch, chief executive of grocery analyst the IGD, said, “With deflation easing, there are various reasons to believe that food retail sales might have turned a corner although optimism is tempered by the many uncertainties in the global economy.”

Free content and services are being put at risk as almost one in seven (15 per cent) British adults online are currently using ad blocking software – mainly because they find online ads interruptive or annoying.
This is according to the Internet Advertising Bureau UK Ad Blocking report, conducted by YouGov, who conducted a survey of 2,057 GB online adults in June 2015. Over one in five (22 per cent) admitted having downloaded the software at some point.
Key findings of the report:
Ad blocking is more prevalent among men and 18-34 year olds
• Only half of ad blockers do so primarily to block all ads
• Main motivation is to block ‘interruptive’ or ‘annoying’ ads
• Nearly half of adults online are unaware that ads fund content at little or no cost
Men (22 per cent) are currently more than twice as likely to block ads as women (9 per cent). It’s most prevalent among 18-24 (34 per cent) and 25-34 year olds (19 per cent). Regionally, people in the North and Scotland (both 19 per cent) are the most likely to be doing so.
Only just over half (52 per cent) of those who’ve used the software said their main motivation was to block all ads; 12 per cent said it was to block certain types of ads, 11 per cent say only to block ads from certain websites.
Ads are most likely to be blocked because they interrupt what people are doing (cited by 73 per cent) or the design is annoying (55 per cent) – e.g. bright colours, pop-ups etc. Over half (54 per cent) do so because ads slow down their web browsing experience. Nearly half (46 per cent) say it’s because the ads aren’t relevant.
Less than half (44 per cent) of British adults online who responded said that they were aware that most websites are free – such as social networks, email, news, music streaming services – because they’re funded by advertising. Thus, when an individual blocks ads, the site doesn’t receive ad revenue for that user.
Men (52 per cent) are much more likely to be aware of this than women (36 per cent). Awareness also decreases with age – from 59 per cent of 18-24s to 36 per cent of people 55+.
However, only 10 per cent are less likely to block ads after being made aware that ads fund free content.
Two-thirds (66 per cent) of all respondents would still prefer to access free content and have no ads. Only one in five (21 per cent) prefers free content in return for having ads. Just 3 per cent would prefer to pay for content in return for not having ads.
“When it comes to a free and an ad-free internet, a lot of consumers want to have their cake and eat it,” said IAB’s CEO, Guy Phillipson. “However, those unaware that most online services are free – or cost very little – because sites make money from showing visitors ads, could be in for a shock if websites start charging for access because ad blocking reduces their revenue from advertising. The bottom line is that if the web didn’t have ads, most sites could only exist by charging subscriptions.”
Among those currently using ad blocking software, 80 per cent are doing so on laptops, 46 per cent on desktop PCs. Less than one in five (19 per cent) is blocking ads on tablets or mobiles.

Hackers are exploiting a serious flaw in the internet's architecture, according to a security firm. The bug apparently targets systems which convert URLs into IP addresses. Exploiting it could threaten the smooth running of internet services as it allows hackers to launch denial-of-service attacks on websites, potentially forcing them offline. Bind is the name of a variety of Domain Name System (DNS) software used on the majority of internet servers. The recently identified bug allows attackers to crash the software, therefore taking the DNS service offline and preventing URLs, for example, from working. A patch for the flaw is already available, but many systems are yet to be updated.

PARIS RETAIL WEEK THE NEW EVENT DEDICATED TO 360-DEGREE RETAIL

 Taking place from 21 – 23 of September 2015, PARIS RETAIL WEEK will brings the two trade shows E-commerce Paris and Digital(in)Store by Equipmag under one banner for the first time. This dual event will bring together brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce professionals from around the world, making Paris the capital of Retail. 

Ecommerce Paris is the perfect mix between an exhibition and conference: more than 300 conferences held in plenary rooms where visitors learn from the brand’s winning strategies, and solution workshops, the visitor’s «tool boxes » providing practical solutions for business issues. 

Digital(in)Store by Equipmag is the new event dedicated to point-of-sale digitisation and connected commerce. Built around business meetings and innovative content, DIGITAL(in)STORE by Equipmag highlights the new point-of-sale technologies.

For more information, visit ecommerceparis.com and digital-in-store-event.com

Request your free access badge: http://badge.ecommerceparis.com/Default.aspx?idInvitation=BAN31&IdLangue=EN

LAST CHANCE FOR EARLY BIRD TICKETS TO INTERACT LONDON

On 20 - 21October 2015, Interact London will be descending on the beautiful settings of The British Museum for two days of cutting edge talks from some of the leading thinkers in the UX, IA and Design world. Among the names confirmed so far are the great minds of Anjan Chatterjee, Todd Wilkens, and Steve Portigal. All of the confirmed speakers can be seen here and they will be unveiling lots more in the coming weeks so make sure you keep an eye on Interact London’s twitter for regular updates.

This is your last chance to grab your Early Bird tickets, with the offer available until Thursday 30^th April with two day passes available for just £300* + the usual fees and VAT. Grab yours today, here >>

Ticket cost covers refreshments including pastries on arrival, teas and coffees throughout the day and buffet lunch.
If you have any questions, are interested in speaking at Interact London or would like to discuss sponsorship opportunities, please contact interactconf@nomensa.com or call 0117 929 7333