Adobe expects price conscious UK consumers to set new spending record of £25.9 billion this holiday season

UK shoppers are forecast to spend a record of £25.9 billion online during the holiday season (November-December), £300 million more than the previous record set in 2020, and up 6.1% over the 2023 holiday season, according to research by Adobe Digital Insights.

Black Friday (£1.13 billion) and Cyber Monday (£940 million) will again be the highest online spending days of the year, up 9% and 6.7% year-over-year respectively, as increasingly price aware shoppers look for maximum value

“While UK shoppers are spending more freely this holiday season, it’s clear that consumers are still observing the more cautious, value and price conscious habits that emerged during periods of high costs-of-living over the past 18 months,” says Vivek Pandya, lead analyst, Adobe Digital Insights at Adobe.

“Deal hungry shoppers will again concentrate their spending over the Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend as they take advantage of the deep discounts on offer across all retail categories to stretch their budgets as far as possible.”

While Britons are spending more freely this holiday season, they are also looking to manage their personal finances through increased utilisation of short-term interest free credit from buy now pay later services to spread the cost of payments and take full advantage of limited time discounts and flash sales when they land.

A record £3.4 billion is expected to be spent using BNPL services this holiday season, up 8.3% YoY, with £152.3 million expected to be spent on Cyber Monday, making it the largest ever single day for BNPL usage, up £4.3 million on last year’s Cyber Monday.

Meanwhile, traffic referred to retail sites from generative AI sources has skyrocketed this year, with momentum building rapidly as the holiday season approaches. After maintaining steady volumes earlier in the year, GenAI referrals to retail sites have increased tenfold between July and September 2024.

Given this rapid momentum, referrals from GenAI sites are projected to rise even further throughout the holiday season as shoppers look to new channels for holiday gift inspiration, recommendations and finding the best price for the items they want.

Finally, £14.6 billion will be spent via mobile this holiday season (November-December), representing 8.4% growth over last years' £13.5 billion. Mobile revenue share during the holiday season is forecast to be 56.3% of online spend increasing from 55.2% over the same period in 2023.

2024 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Online retail is a key focus area for the sixth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards, which are now closed for entries.

The awards, sponsored by Vista Technology Support, Scala, CADS, 3D Cloud, Brightpearl by Sage’s Lightning 50, Business France, and Retail Technology Show 2025, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Key 2024 dates

Friday, 25th October: Award entry deadline 

Tuesday, 29th October: 2024 shortlist revealed

30th October-6th November: Judging days

Thursday, 21st November: Winners announced at the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards ceremony, to be held at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London.