Will Snow and Ice Mean A Boost For Online Sales?
Those charged with buying the office Christmas corporate gifts this year will be eyeing the calendar this week as December comes around. If you don’t have too many to buy then you might have been tempted to hit the High Street and get into the festive spirit when buying your Christmas corporate gifts, but nationwide snow and ice has left many roads and pavements treacherous, and freezing temperatures have meant that hitting the high street is only for the brave.
This unseasonably cold weather might well be good news for online stores as customers shun the freezing temperatures in favour of doing their Christmas shopping in the warm. The only real restriction to online shopping is lead times, but with more companies now offering a quick turnaround even on large orders, the web is opening up a whole new world of options for those who are leaving their Christmas corporate gifts shopping late.
So with temperatures plummeting across the country, will customers choose to shun the high street in favour of shopping in the warm?
One big advantage the high street has over internet shopping is the atmosphere created, with shops putting on Christmas displays and playing music to get everyone in the holiday mood. There is also the social aspect of shopping with friends and colleagues, and hitting the high street can be more than just the process of buying your gifts.
Forecasters (economic rather than metrological) are predicting that online stores will make big gains in the market this year, and a combination of ease of use and variety of choice makes online shopping an appealing prospect even with warmer weather outside.
High street shops will be hoping for a rise in temperatures as freezing conditions will inevitably drive more shoppers indoors, and short lead times will mean more businesses using online stores to buy their Christmas corporate gifts in December.
One thing that the internet does not have however is a Christmas atmosphere, and with consumers getting their pre-Christmas pay cheques over the next week we will soon see what effect the cold conditions are going to have. With the weather outside set to stay frightful for the foreseeable future, we will soon see if it will be a delightful festive season for online stores.