1.7m Brits plan to do all their Christmas shopping online

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Merry Clickmas: 1.7m Brits plan to do all their Christmas shopping online this year

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This year will see a 6% rise in the number of online-only shoppers buying from home everything from food and booze to gifts, cloths and gadgets

A record 1.7 million people plan to shun the high street and do all their festive ­shopping online this year.

According to a study by website BeforeWeBuy, this year will see a 6% rise in the number of online only shoppers buying from home everything from food and booze to gifts, cloths and gadgets.

On average, they will splash out £600 on their complete Christmas list, snapping up a total of 340 million presents.

Books are top of the must-buy list with a third of shoppers, followed by clothing, toys, food and drink.

And with two thirds of the population expected to buy some of their Christmas goodies online, experts are predicting virtual jingle tills with spending rocketing 32% from almost £8 billion last year to £10.6 billion this year.

Gabby Charlies, co-founder of BeforeWeBuy said: “It’s set to be a record year for the virtual high street this Christmas.

“With family finances stretched, it’s a no-brainer for people to turn to online shopping and discount vouchers as a way to avoid paying full price, not to mention the hustle and bustle of the high street.”

Britain’s biggest parcel delivery service Royal Mail is bracing itself for the unprecedented number of online shoppers by opening eight depots just for internet customers.

New parcel sorting centres from Glasgow to Bolton and Swindon to Greenford will ease congestion for the 86 million packages delivered by Royal Mail this Christmas.

A spokesman said: “Christmas is the busiest time of year for Royal Mail and our customers. Royal Mail has invested in eight dedicated parcel sort centres to increase our scale and improve our flexibility during this important time of year for our customers.”

[andy2007]

Well that's great news for us, but I feel sorry for the High Street shops which will no doubt loose a lot of custom.