Top 3 mcommerce stats from the Drapers Etail report 2013

Drapers have just released their 2013 Etail report, looking at how UK fashion consumers shop online. It’s packed with useful stats, so we’ve picked out the top 3 findings about mcommerce.

1. Age is just a number – unless you’re talking mobile apps

As shown in last year’s report, 25-34 yr olds are ahead of the curve when it comes to mobile shopping. Not only does this demographic shop online frequently (just under half buy something once a month or more), they’re very mobile savvy.

They are the age group who love apps, with nearly 25% of them saying they prefer to use a mobile app when looking at fashion on their phone.

They’re also the least likely to say they never look at fashion retailers’ website on their mobile phone, with just 38% agreeing with the statement.

Key lesson? If your target audience is 25-34 years old, mobile is vital for your brand.

Whereas if you’re selling to the over 55s, it’s probably not on your agenda at all at the moment. That doesn’t mean things will change in future. Only 30% of the 55+ age group said they never shop online, which is less than last year’s survey from Drapers. The older generation are buying on the internet, just not on mobile devices (yet).

2. Tablets bring you both sales and brand awareness (but in different groups of people)

There’s already lots of research out there about tablets having a higher AOV than mobile phones. The Drapers survey backs this up. There’s a significant jump in tablet usage for households with an income over £55,000 a year.

In fact, 1 in 5 people who earn between £55-69,000 a year prefer to shop on tablets.

25-34 yr olds are a key demographic again for tablets. Around 18% say they prefer to shop for fashion on a tablet, but even more are browsing fashion websites and apps on the devices. And once again this age group are app-evangelists. Take a look at this graph:

 3. Men like buying fashion on their phones, women like researching and browsing on their phones

This question in the survey is worded slightly oddly, but it seems to have been asked to everyone who said they use their mobile phones to look at fashion websites. And you can see that men are significantly more likely to buy on their phones than women.

However, women are more likely browse and research fashion on their phones before buying on another device, or in a shop.

What does this mean for fashion retailers?

Well, if your target customer is a man in the 25-34 year old age group, and you don’t already have a mobile app – you might want to think about it! And if you’re aiming your products at an affluent demographic, maybe it’s time to start planning a specialist tablet strategy.

There’s lots more useful statistics in the report, including information about how social media influences buying and what encourages customers to purchase online (if you guessed free shipping, you’re on the right track). You can download it here.

If you liked this post, take a look at our blog about last year’s report from Drapers and the 5 most vital stats.. We’re also offering ecommerce brands a free mobile audit so you easily benchmark yourself against other online fashion retailers.