There has been a significant increase in the number of Australians shopping online, according to new research from Roy Morgan.
The research found that over the year to March 2018, 9.46 million Australians (46.8 per cent of the population) aged 14 and older bought something online in an average four-week period. This was an increase of 590,000 in just 12 months, and an increase of 2.3 million since 2014.
“The data is unequivocal – Australians can’t get enough of shopping online,” Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine said. “In any given four-week period, more and more of us are purchasing products as diverse as entertainment, clothing, food, reading matter, health and beauty products, furniture and electronics via the internet.
“With nearly 9.5 million Australians or 46.8 per cent purchasing online in an average four-week period, and the rapid growth over recent years, this is a retail revolution.”
Entertainment and leisure items accounted for the greatest number of internet shoppers, with 4.5 million people buying something from this category in any given four weeks, followed by fashion (2.7 million), food and beverages (2.4 million) and reading material (2.2 million).
Online shopping has risen for every product category in the chart except for furniture. Between 2017 and 2018, fashion shoppers (2.7 million) and health and beauty products (1.4 million) both increased sales by 21.1 per cent over the year, with entertainment and leisure up by 11.1 per cent.