Rainy days: miserable weather set to boost Brits’ online spending by £650 million in 2023

UK consumers will spend £754 million extra online this year because of rain, snow and high winds – with rain the biggest contributor to the overall uplift at £650 million, according to research from the Adobe Digital Economy Index, powered by Adobe Analytics.

To put these numbers in context, weather alone could result in more consumer spending than Cyber Monday, which at £732 million was the biggest online shopping day of 2022.

The Digital Economy Index analyses tens of billions of visits to retail sites from UK consumers, 100 million SKUs, and 18 product categories.

By leveraging data from the The Weather Company, an IBM business, Adobe says it can predict how much additional online spend will come because of adverse weather conditions including rain, high winds, and snow.

Following the sixth wettest July on record, this new analysis reveals that when daily rainfall is between 1-4 cm, and consumers spend more time indoors, they increase their online spending by as much as 4.4% above normal levels.

The impact of rain on e-commerce is particularly pronounced at the weekend, when wet conditions can see online spending rise by 12%, compared with weekdays where spending increases between 1% and 4% are more typical.

Vivek Pandya, Lead Analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, says: “As our new analysis shows, weather conditions aren’t just influencing the products people buy, they are now also impacting how people are shopping, with many heading online for their items rather than braving the elements when the weather turns.”

“While rainfall and bad weather can be a washout for the high street, it presents an opportunity for those retailers with strong online and mobile offerings that can market to their customers in real-time as weather conditions change.”

While Adobe’s analysis showed that snow has a lesser effect on online spending – contributing around £65 million to total online spending – it found that it has a greater impact in areas that rarely experience snowfall.

Cities in the UK with low amounts of annual snow are more influenced by a dusting of snow than cities that receive more than 10 cm of snow per year, seeing a snow related spending uplift of 17% and 6% respectively.

Leon Brown, Head of Global Meteorological Operations at The Weather Company, says: “As the UK is adapting to more and more extremes in the weather, from the record 40C heat and drought last summer, then this year the hottest June on record followed by the sixth wettest July on record, it is becoming more and more important to understand the impacts weather is having on our behaviour and shopping habits.”

“Despite changing weather and seasonal norms, it is not only possible, but also beneficial, for retailers and brands to plan around the weather.”