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11/01/2005: "Forrester: Holiday E-Commerce to Grow 25% to $18B"

According to DM News, Forrester Research expects U.S. online retail sales for this holiday season to touch $18 billion, up 25 percent from a year ago.

The Cambridge, MA, market researcher said an influx of 2.5 million new households this year to online shopping will offset economic concerns over consumer spending.

A lot has been said lately about the consumer cutting down on spending. And Dell reported lower than expected earnings and too much inventory. So some areas do seem down. But according to this report and others, online buying should be very good indeed.

Also, retailers this year again will offer free shipping to entice consumers to spend more, with a minimum-spend requirement to avoid making this ploy a loss leader. Twenty-five percent of online holiday shoppers surveyed last year said they would buy more online to avoid shipping fees.

Retailers also will use the full might of their Web sites to drive online consumers to shop in stores. This multichannel shopping capability might generate more spend from consumers.

Consumer electronics and toys will see strong e-commerce growth this holiday season. So will apparel, driven by a growing number of women shopping online and retailers that offer better tools to show style and fit.