IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops List, February 2010

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Lindsay O’Gorman
Marketing Executive, Experian Hitwise
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IMRG-HITWISE HOT SHOPS LIST, FEBRUARY 2010

Experian Hitwise today (2nd March) publishes the sixteenth quarterly edition of the IMRG-HITWISE HOT SHOPS LIST, which ranks by popularity, as indicated by visits, the top 50 UK e-retailers* selling goods and services within the IMRG Index Classification**.

It’s steady again at the top of the latest Hot Shops List, with the leading four brands retaining their dominance of the UK online shopping scene: Amazon.co.uk (1), Argos (2), Play (3) & Apple Computer (4). Amazon.com (5), Tesco (6) & John Lewis (8) all moved up one place with Easyjet (10) entering the top 10 by moving up 2 places. Marks & Spencer (7) fell two places and Next (9) dropped a single place.

To request a full copy of the report, please email press.uk@hitwise.com.   

IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops List, February 2010

*The IMRG-Experian Hitwise Hot Shops List excludes eBay and price comparison / aggregator websites such as Kelkoo and Froogle.   **IMRG Capgemini Index Classification:  Beer / wine / spirits; Books; CDs / tapes / records; Clothing / footwear / accessories; Computer hardware / peripherals / consumables; Consumer electronics; Digital downloads (e.g. music, software); Flowers; Food, beverages and household supplies; Furniture; Garden / DIY; Health and beauty; Home appliances (e.g. washing machines); Household goods (e.g. kitchenware, bedding); Jewellery / watches; Software; Sporting goods; Tickets (e.g. cinema, theatre, events); Toys; Travel (e.g. flights, holidays, hotels, car hire); Video games; Videos / DVDs

The biggest movers this quarter were: Thomas Cook (15) moving up thirty one positions, British Airways (31) moved up eleven places, The Trainline (24) and Thomson Holidays (11) both climbed ten.

There was only one new entrant to the list this quarter - the new Littlewoods brand, Very.co.uk (34). Tesco Superstore (28), TravelRepublic.co.uk (39) and First Choice (45) all re-entered the Top 50 having been there previously.

Some brands fell significantly this quarter compared to last. Ticketmaster (37) fell twenty one places, Sainsburys (41) & O2 Shop (47) both fell twelve spots, while Travelodge (46) fell nine places.  Another twenty two moved down by less than nine places while Carphone Warehouse, HP, QVCUK.com and Toys 'R' Us UK all fell out of the top 50 this quarter.

IMRG's CEO, James Roper, comments:    
"This new Hot Shops List records retail traffic when online sales were growing at their lowest rate since records began, a decade ago.  The current recession began in December 2007 according the National Bureau of Economic Research (the official arbiter of recessions) so it is interesting to note how HSL rankings compare with the period prior to the economic collapse.  Three years ago, in February 2007, the top HSL positions were broadly the same – Amazon 1 (now 1), Argos 2 (2), Tesco 3 (6), Play.com 4 (3), easyJet 5 (10).  Big high street names are some of the biggest risers since February 2007 – Marks & Spencer 16 (now 7), John Lewis 22 (8), Next 18 (9), and Debenhams 42 (18).  We expect significant fresh movement on the HSL this year as the economy begins to recover, pushing more trade online, and the next generation of innovations, such as mobile apps, kick in."  
    
Experian Hitwise's Director of Research, Robin Goad, comments:    
"With Christmas and sales shopping mostly out of the way and snow covering much of the country, during January British consumers turned their attention to planning and booking their summer holidays. Seven travel companies moved up the rankings, and easyJet re-entered the top 10. The big travel agencies did particularly well, with Thomas Cook moving 31 positions to 15th and Thomson Holidays 10 positions to 11th, one ahead of Expedia. There was minimal movement elsewhere in the top 10 and the top four remain unchanged. The big retailers that managed to extend their sales beyond the immediate post-Christmas week fared well, while LoveFilm also benefited from the poor weather; why go out in the cold when you can stay inside with a good DVD?"

About Experian Hitwise

Experian Hitwise is the leading online competitive intelligence service. Experian Hitwise gives marketers a competitive advantage by providing daily insights on how 25 million Internet users around the world interact with more than 1 million Web sites. This external view helps companies grow and protect their businesses by identifying threats and opportunities as they develop. Experian Hitwise has more than 1,500 clients across numerous sectors, including financial services, media, travel and retail.

Experian Hitwise (FTS:EXPN), www.experianplc.com, operates in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada, France and Brazil. More information about Experian Hitwise is available at www.hitwise.co.uk.

For up-to-date analysis of online trends, please visit the Experian Hitwise research blog at www.ilovedata.com and the Experian Hitwise Data Centre at www.hitwise.com/uk/resources/data-centre.

About Experian

Experian is the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to clients in more than 65 countries. The company helps businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. Experian also helps individuals to manage their credit relationships and protect against identity theft.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended 31 March 2009 was $3.9 billion. Experian employs approximately 15,000 people in 40 countries and has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; Costa Mesa, California; and São Paulo, Brazil. 

For more information, visit http://www.experianplc.com.