Retailers in the United Kingdom are experiencing an influx of sales made from mobile devices, as consumers are using the technology to browse for and buy products from their preferred brands. Merchants will need to implement solutions to accommodate these customers or risk losing out on valuable businesses, industry experts say.

Boxing Day 2012 was an exceptionally high day in terms of retail sales from mobile devices, according to research from Usablenet. Purchases made from smartphones and tablets were 38 percent higher on the day after Christmas than they were on Cyber Monday, the source states.

“Data from Boxing Day and other key shopping days such as Cyber Monday has demonstrated that consumers are fundamentally changing the way they shop,” said Usablenet marketing chief Carin van Vuuren. “Mobile is now a fully-fledged channel and the best mix of multichannel combines it with in-store platforms.”

Gulf News writes that if merchants fail to adopt mobile technology to accommodate device-carrying shoppers, they could see sharp decreases in satisfaction, revenues and retention. The source notes that some brands could even be forced to close their doors if mobile is not implemented.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Thursday, February 7th, 2013 at 11:03 am .