Electronics, Computers Push Online Spending Up
Total spending of online sales increased from $4.2 billion in September to $4.4 billion in October, according to the NRF/Forrester Online Retail Index.
Total spending of online sales increased from $4.2 billion in September to $4.4 billion in October, according to the NRF/Forrester Online Retail Index.
Categories that experienced a significant increase include consumer electronics and computer hardware. Online sales of consumer electronics jumped from $164 million in September to $246 million in October. Similarly, computer hardware increased from $315 million in September to $425 million in October.
Sales of videos and toys/video games also grew significantly in October. Videos increased from $85 million in September to $121 million in October — a 42 percent increase. Toys/video games grew to $203 million in October, from $157 million September — a 29 percent increase.
| October 2000 NRF/Forrester Online Retail Index | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Total Spent in October (in thousands) |
Total Spent in September (in thousands) |
October Index Results (October/September) |
| Small-Ticket Items | |||
| Software | $165,816 | $163,735 | 1.01 |
| Books | $205,296 | $219,870 | 0.93 |
| Music | $145,915 | $132,516 | 1.10 |
| Videos | $121,855 | $85,605 | 1.42 |
| Office supplies | $135,098 | $164,953 | 0.82 |
| Apparel | $253,435 | $256,243 | 0.99 |
| Footwear | $68,974 | $61,159 | 1.13 |
| Jewelry | $86,757 | $92,070 | 0.94 |
| Flowers | $49,534 | $55,802 | 0.89 |
| Linens/Home Decor | $84,071 | $88,773 | 0.95 |
| Health and Beauty | $147,995 | $139,541 | 1.06 |
| Small appliances | $56,286 | $72,934 | 0.77 |
| Toys/Video Games | $203,363 | $157,641 | 1.29 |
| Sporting Goods | $67,617 | $62,876 | 1.08 |
| Tools and Hardware | $43,544 | $49,752 | 0.88 |
| Garden Supplies | $26,745 | $41,600 | 0.64 |
| Big-Ticket Items | |||
| Computer hardware | $425,724 | $315,644 | 1.35 |
| Consumer Electronics | $246,540 | $164,694 | 1.50 |
| Appliances | $29,723 | $29,358 | 1.01 |
| Furniture | $59,941 | $32,421 | 1.85 |
| Food/Beverages | $157,616 | $165,128 | 0.95 |
| Airline Tickets | $685,199 | $686,377 | 1.00 |
| Car Rental | $165,632 | $171,579 | 0.97 |
| Hotel Reservations | $376,301 | $368,466 | 1.02 |
| Other | $403,318 | $442,161 | 0.91 |
| Total Spending | $4,412,296 | $4,220,898 | 1.05 |
| Number of Buyers | 16,444 | 15,500 | 1.06 |
| Average Spent per Consumer | $268.33 | $272.42 | 0.98 |
| Source: NRF/Forrester | |||
About the index:
The NRF/Forrester Online Retail Index measures, on a monthly basis, the growth and seasonality of online shopping based on data collected from online shoppers. The Index is based on 5,000 responses to an online panel fielded by Greenfield Online during the first 10 business days of each month. The monthly panel is weighted to Forrester Research’s Benchmark Panel, which surveyed nearly 90,000 US and Canadian members of a consumer mail panel developed by NPD Group. Data was weighed to represent the North American population demographically.
- Compare to September’s Online Retail Index
- Top E-Tailers of October 2000 (PC Data Online)
