How the UK High Street Went Online
Over the last 30 years our high streets have been gradually building their stores and customers online. We asked Dr Fiona Ellis-Chadwick to tell the story of the early adopters and key innovations in the UK’s online purchasing…
This month is the 30th anniversary of the .uk domain, and in those 30 years the Internet has changed the way we shop in the UK. Even those of us who do not buy online regularly Google in our millions to find out prices, product specifications, and availability, before heading to the high street. Retailers in the UK recognise that the Internet’s power is transforming the way their customers’ shop and at the same time re-shaping the high street. Many of us now shop on the move, unrestricted by store opening times. Research by IMRG suggests over 60 per cent of smartphone shoppers do their Christmas shopping by phone. Many of these digitally connected shoppers admit to ‘showrooming’ — a technique that involves browsing high street stores to find the product they like and then by buying via a smartphone or tablet computer at whichever online retailer offers the best price.
But 30 years ago most of us were oblivious to the existence of the internet as a place to shop. So how did we we make the move to shopping online? Tesco and ASDA dabbled with home shopping services via the computer in the mid- 1980s but it was not until the invention of the World Wide Web by Tim Berners-Lee that widespread consumer use of the Internet became a possibility.
1995–2000 — The Pioneers
US retailers showed the way in developing the online sales but leading high street retailers in the UK began to explore online selling offering limited ranges of goods. A period of experimentation ensued, with large and medium sized retailers exploring what they might sell on-line and how they could get their goods to the customers. More products became available but still the majority of the UK high street was closed for business online — most had not even registered their domain names yet.
2000–2005 — Cautious Experiments
The Dot Com bubble burst in 2000 and sent ripples across the retail sector. Boo.com collapsed and Amazon was yet to declare a profit. So UK retailers proceeded with caution. However, a land grab started to happen as brands wanted to secure their .uk domain names for future development. More experimentation in the way shoppers behaved online began as comparison sites emerged. Google, Apple, Skype and Facebook began to bring internet technology into mainstream and this gave innovative consumers more confidence to shop online.
2005–2010 — Online Shopping comes of Age
Confidence was building in the retail sector as more retailers developed their online service and began to deal with the challenges of multichannel retailing. Secure reliable payment systems become established and more importantly, trusted by users. Social media enabled digital shoppers to build communities of commentators of online store performance. There was now hundreds of online shops, broad ranges of product availability, choices of delivery options and a many established ways to pay. Online shopping moved ahead full steam, and shoppers in the UK develop a voracious appetite for buying online.
2011–2015 — Shopping Goes Mobile and Social
Online retailers became more sophisticated in their online offer, improved levels of service and joined the social media conversation. Omni channel customer journeys become the goal for many retailers, with the introduction of mobile commerce and click and collect. If in 1997 online shopping was seen as a threat, in 2015 it is firmly embedded in every company’s strategy. With Apple Pay launching in the UK and Google, Facebook and Pinterest introducing ‘Buy’ buttons into their apps, online shopping is set for yet another revolution.
Article by Dr Fiona Ellis-Chadwick, Senior Lecturer in Marketing & Retailing, Loughborough University. Illustrations by Darren Garrett, using data from Dr Chadwick.
This story is one of 30 celebrating the launch of .uk domain names in 1985. To read the others visit our 30 Years of .uk hub. To start your own .uk story check out www.agreatplacetobe.uk.
