The prospect of weeks trapped at home has seen Britons embark on unlikely shopping sprees as they create home offices and gyms but also embrace hobbies ranging from dressmaking to jigsaw puzzling and growing their own veg.
With all non-essential high street shops and some websites now closed, what is left of high street trade is online as households hunker down and seek ways to keep themselves and their children entertained.
During week one of the government’s new home isolation rules, online sales were “fairly flat” on a year ago, according to the IMRG Capgemini online retail index. However, that measure, based on the web sales of 200 retailers, masked seesawing demand: while sales of electricals and DIY products were up 42% and 14% respectively, sales of clothing fell 27% and demand for footwear slumped 38%.
On Thursday Dixons Carphone, which also owns Currys, said online sales had jumped 72% over the last three weeks thanks to bumper sales of computers and printers as well as TVs, games consoles and household appliances like freezers. John Lewis also reported high demand…
