Brits to Avoid High Streets This Christmas

European study reveals British high street shopping to be most stressful and time consuming in Europe

Twenga, the shopping search engine and price comparison site, today reveals the results of a study that interviewed more than 3,000 internet users across six European countries, including the UK. The figures show that the main motivation to shop online this Christmas differs from country to country, with the vast majority (85%) of British respondents choosing to shop online because it is ‘less tiring and stressful’ than going to the shops and 84% choosing online to save time. The desire to spend less was the main motivation from France and Italy where ‘it is less expensive’ was the most popular reason to shop online.

Online Winners and Losers

Earlier this month Twenga released survey results concluding that the British, with 48% planning to spend less, along with Italians, the French and the Spanish are among the countries most likely to cut down on Christmas spending. So, with smaller budgets this year, the second half of Twenga’s survey asked where the money will be spent. Results suggest that well-known online stores such as Amazon are the preferred Christmas shopping destination for 72% of the British online shoppers (61% in Europe), ahead of multi channel stores that also have a high street presence. Less well-known stores face a challenge as only 28% of British users (25% in Europe) intend to try them.

The main hurdle for purchasing more online was consistent across all countries with the basic need to see and touch things before buying them being cited as the number one concern. This was closely followed by a worry that products would not be delivered on time – which leads 57% to do their shopping before December (against 48% on the high street). Apart from delivery issues, however, British Web users show a high level of trust in online shopping with very few (1%) stating they’re not comfortable with the technology and few (11%) expressing concerns over online payments.

“Bricks and mortar shops are increasingly being used as a show room where customers make emotional decisions based on the touch and feel of a product, they then go online to make a rational decision and purchase based on price and availability. Our survey showed that the British are savvy online shoppers with 65% finding price comparisons useful in their buying decisions.” said Bastien Duclaux, CEO of Twenga.

Methodology

What impact will the financial crisis have on Christmas shopping habits? To find out, Twenga asked 3,000 Internet users questions about their budget and how they plan to spend it. The study was conducted online by Novamétrie for Twenga on a representative sample (using quota sampling) of 3004 Internet users in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK between 17th and 22nd October 2008.

**Full details of study available on request**

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For more information please contact:
Georgina Firth / Jodie Welton at Connected PR
Tel: +44 (0)7778 241 333 / +44 (0)7887 780464
georgina@connectedpr.eu / mailto:jodie@connectedpr.eu

About Twenga

Twenga, the shopping search engine, price comparison site and shopping guide, enables millions of shoppers to find what they want, at the best price, from the online shop of their choice.

Thanks to its home-grown technology, Twenga automatically gathers offerings from online shops worldwide and displays them on one clear searchable site. As a result, Twenga’s shop listing is the most comprehensive on the Web. Search results are objective and free from commercial bias.

Founded in 2006 by Bastien Duclaux and Cedric Anes, Twenga is headquartered in Paris, France; its 11 sites, including the UK, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Brazil, and Russia, display 100 million offerings from over 60,000 online shops. In September 2008, Twenga received over 17 million visits.