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Percentage Turnover Generated by Online Sales

January 2022 (Provisional)

CSO statistical release, , 11am

Introduction

Information on online sales is collected as part of the Retail Sales Index. The results in the charts below are based on online sales in Irish resident retail stores and excludes any expenditure by Irish households via overseas websites.

Figure 1 Percentage of Turnover generated by Online Sales for All Retail Sales and All Retail Sales excluding Motor Trades, Fuel and Bars

January 2022 provisional results based on early returns from sample retailers and subject to revision

Figure 1 shows the percentage of turnover generated by online sales of Irish retailers for All Retail Businesses and for All Retail Businesses excluding Motor Trades, Automotive Fuel and Bars monthly since December 2018.

The proportion of retail sales transacted online for All Retail Businesses was 5.8% in January 2022 compared to 9.7% in December 2021, 11.0% in January 2021 and 3.2% in January 2020.

In December 2019, the proportion of retail sales generated online for All Retail Businesses was 4.1%. In the first three months of 2020, the share of online sales continued at 3.2% in January, 3.5% in February and 4.5% in March. Following the first lockdown on 27 March 2020, the share of online sales increased dramatically. Online sales represented 15.3% of total turnover in April 2020.

There were similar but less dramatic increases in the share of online sales in subsequent lockdowns. Ireland was placed under Level 5 restrictions for six weeks from Wednesday 21 October 2020 and was again placed under Level 5 restrictions on 31 December 2020. Following these restrictions, the share of online sales was 12.4% in November 2020, 11.0% in January 2021 and 11.8% in February 2021.

When Motor Trades, Automotive Fuel and Bars are excluded, the share of online retail sales in December 2019 was 6.6%. This figure increased to 22.7% of total sales in April 2020 during the first lockdown. In the subsequent lockdowns, the online share was 18.7% in November 2020, 16.1% in January 2021 and 17.6% in February 2021.

Figure 2 Percentage of Turnover generated by Online Sales for selected Retail Sectors

January 2022 provisional results based on early returns from sample retailers and subject to revision

Figure 2 shows the percentage of turnover generated online for four sectors of retail beginning in December 2018.

Before the pandemic, in December 2019, 7.3% of Clothing, Footwear and Textile sales were generated online. This increased to 66.3% of total sales in the sector in April 2020 during the first lockdown. In the subsequent lockdowns, the online share was 67.1% in November 2020, 62.7% in January 2021 and 65.9% in February 2021. In the final months of 2021, the online share of sales in the Clothing, Footwear and Textiles was 9.6% in October, 14.7% in November and 8.8% in December. 

In Department Stores, 5.0% of sales were generated online in December 2019, before the pandemic. In April 2020, this had increased to 51.1%. The subsequent lockdowns saw the online share of sales by Department Stores reach 28.8% in November 2020, followed by 26.9%, 35.8% and 28.5% over the course of January, February and March 2021.

In the Household Equipment sector, 8.3% of sales were generated online in December 2019, before the pandemic. This rose to 42.6% in April 2020, followed by 20.5% in November 2020 and 15.3%, 17.7% and 16.8% in January, February and March 2021.

The results are based on sales by retail outlets resident in Ireland. The data for all categories of retail based in Ireland are available on PxStat. Please note that purchases of goods online from overseas retailers or from Northern Ireland are not included in these data.

Further Information

Contact
E-mail: business_stats@cso.ie
Stephanie Kelleher
(+353) 21 453 5123