Shoppers Only Too Happy To ‘Showroom’

A quarter of shoppers admitted to using their mobile device while in stores over Christmas to check prices at a rival retailer.

In a study by consultancy Foolproof through December, almost half of those ‘showroomers’ said they went on to buy from another competitor either on or offline after checking prices.

Foolproof said this was a 22 per cent increase on a year earlier as shoppers increasingly see referring to their mobiles as second nature.

The consultancy suggested that high street retailers should take heart from the fact that 56 per cent of shoppers went on to buy from the original retailer, either online or in the shop, after doing their research.

In the same study, a fifth of all shoppers (20 per cent) bought an item using click-and-collection while higher earners were 50 per cent more likely to use the facility than those on low incomes.

Meanwhile, 16 per cent of people said they went in store only to check out something they planned to buy online.

Foolproof founding partner Peter Ballard said showrooming should not be seen as a threat after what he described as 'a seminal year for retail as it was the first true multichannel Christmas'.

'Christmas 2013 trading results show a clear divide between retailers who have invested - not just in digital - but in a multichannel shopping experience and those who didn't or haven't yet got it right.'

He said: 'The way people shop is evolving and the high street is having to reinvent itself to keep up with consumer demand for new ways to shop. Retailers such as John Lewis and Next, who had good trading results, have embraced online as part of the shopping experience and not just a bolt-on extra.'

He said the digital teams at both those retailers had been able to work with in-store staff to 'create a seamless shopping experience for customers'.

'Other retailers need to follow their example and use this evidence to create a seamless user experience for their customers,' he said.