Nosto’s Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) report indicates that fashion eCommerce performance bounced back after dipping last holiday season. The average order value (AOV) for Fashion & Accessories purchases was up 12 per cent year-on-year (YoY) during this year’s BFCM weekend on the back of a -3 per cent fall in 2020. And while online traffic for eCommerce as a whole was down 7 per cent and sales up 2 per cent this year, fashion bucks the trend slightly with visits up 2 per cent and sales up 3 per cent.
“With conversion rates in fashion falling 9 per cent, and average online orders 12 per cent bigger, it feels like people are being more selective this year,” said Chloe Pascal, Nosto’s global head of marketing. “But they’re willing to splash out on more expensive items when they do spend, perhaps because they held back last season. It’s also likely that after last year’s poor numbers, retailers are working harder than ever to encourage shoppers by personalising the experience to show visitors the most relevant products and using bundled offers and tiered discounts – ‘Get 20% off if you spend over £100’ – to boost average order values.”
Nosto’s analysis is based on over 88 million visits across 907 eCommerce stores over the BFCM weekend in Europe, North America, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand.
Health & Beauty continues to thrive online
Last year, Health & Beauty eCommerce benefited from the pivot to eCommerce which pushed online traffic up 11 per cent, sales up 22 per cent, and conversion rates up 2 per cent during BFCM weekend. This year, although the opening up of in-store shopping may underpin the 6 per cent decrease in online traffic, there were still increases in online sales (2 per cent), conversion rate (1 per cent), and AOV (9 per cent).
“While the year-on-year sales increase is not as big as last year, it looks like consumers’ experience of doing more online shopping for beauty is having a lasting impact,” said Pascal. “People are growing more accustomed to buying beauty online, no doubt helped by retailers’ wider use of innovations such as virtual try-on and video consultations which recreate the feel of an in-store experience to make shoppers feel more confident about their purchases.”
Food & Beverages eCommerce falls away from the highs of last year
In 2020, pandemic restrictions on in-store shopping meant Food & Beverages was one of the most successful eCommerce verticals during the BFCM weekend (traffic increased 31 per cent and sales 45 per cent). This year the sector experienced significant decreases in traffic (down 22 per cent) and sales (down 17 per cent). The good news is that those who are shopping for groceries online are more likely to buy when they visit a store and are spending more when they do – online conversion rates enjoyed a healthy 5 per cent boost, while AOV increased by 6 per cent.
BFCM eCommerce Performance in 5 Key Verticals, 2021 v 2020
| Sales | Traffic | AOV | Conversion Rate | |
| Home & Garden | -0.5% | -15% | 10% | 0.2% |
| Health & Beauty | 2% | -6% | 9% | 1% |
| Fashion & Accessories | 3% | 2% | 12% | -9% |
| Food & Beverages | -17% | -22% | 6% | 5% |
| Sporting Goods & Hobbies | 2% | -7% | 11% | -1% |
Overall eCommerce traffic down on last year
Globally across eCommerce, traffic is down 7 per cent YOY while sales are up 2 per cent, based on data from Nosto. And compared to last year, people are spending 7 per cent less time on site and viewing 9 per cent fewer pages with conversion rates slightly down (2 per cent). Overall, 69 per cent of traffic, 53 per cent of sales, and 56 per cent of orders were taken on mobile, however, people are still more likely to convert on desktop than mobile (3.9 per cent v 2.26 per cent).
BFCM eCommerce Performance by Device in 2021
| Sales | Traffic | Orders | Conversion Rate | |
| Desktop | 47% | 31% | 44% | 3.9% |
| Mobile | 53% | 69% | 56% | 2.26% |
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