Irish shoppers dealing with high prices, bills and lower wages are going online for better value and spent €53m through daily deals sites in 2012, up from €46m a year earlier.
Deals sites allow consumers to avail of affordable offers, such as city breaks, gadgets, meals in restaurants, spa treatments and many more things that while easily accessible in the good times are out of reach for many during the recession.
In the past two and a half years some €110m was spent in this way in the Irish economy.
According to MyDealPage.ie, a deals aggregator site, consumers made savings of €95m by unlocking value in this way.
Daily deals sites active in the Irish economy include LivingSocial, Daily Deals, Groupon, GrabOne, DealRush and Pigsback.ie.
A recent Amarach/UPC report claimed Irish consumers spent €3.7bn online in 2012 and this is set to rise to €5.7bn by 2016 – 7pc of all consumer spending in the State.
The rise in online sales comes at a time when high-street retailers are feeling the pinch of the recession and changing consumer behaviour driven by the rise of smartphones and broadband.
Consumers seek savings
“The savings along with the increasing usage of smartphones and tablets are key factors in consumers’ migration towards online shopping,” explained Charles Maltha, co-founder of MyDealPage.ie.
“Considering the daily deal market over 2012, almost 4,500 vouchers were sold every single day. This market is overlooked in most analytical reports but is a considerable driver in the consumers’ shift.
“Year on year people are getting more comfortable about shopping online and they are realising the potential savings it can offer. The daily deal market has certainly helped people get familiar with the benefits of buying from the internet.
“In contrast to most other online shops, the daily deal market has created a beneficial connection between the online market and high-street retailers. Where most online shops take customers away from the high street, one of the benefits of the daily deal market is that it drives customers into the doors of hotels, restaurants, beauty salons and other businesses,” Maltha said.
