Does Amazon control the Christmas market?

In the UK, it would appear that we are a nation of shoppers, but never more so than at Christmas: according to this review by Betway, the UK spends around £20 billion each year on Christmas gifts. By anyone’s standards, that is a substantial sum of money to spend on presents.

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Trends come and go each Christmas, and every year we are looking for the next ‘big thing’ to buy for our loved ones. Where do we turn to make sure that we are getting the best price, the fastest delivery, and the ultimate in convenience? For many the answer to this question is online. For many more, the answer is more specific: Amazon.

The march of online spending

In 2019, the UK High Street saw a slump of over 8% in spending for the Christmas period. Every retailer was left in a state of panic and needed to drive sales to save what should be their most lucrative time of the year. With prices slashed, the battle moved from the High Street to online. Christmas Day 2019 saw a staggering £1 billion-plus being spent online in the UK. Research in the UK during 2020 revealed that the majority (30.1%) of us start our hunt for Christmas gifts on Amazon. With growing sales each and every year seeing Amazon becoming the go-to place for Christmas gifts, does this spell the end of the High Street, and even other online retailers, and what is it about Amazon that pushes it to the top?

There’s millions said Geoffrey

In the 1990s ‘Geoffrey’ boasted that Toys R Us had millions of toys all under one roof, only to see their demise. Millions was certainly a boast to be proud of, and one that Amazon can share: there are truly millions of items on offer all at the same site. The difference? Amazon isn’t just about toys!

Looking for the latest technology? Amazon is sure to have what you’re looking for. Wanting toys that even Geoffrey couldn’t find? You can find that on Amazon too. Books, food, office supplies, literally anything can be found on Amazon.

Add the variation of product types to beyond competitive prices, speedy delivery, and the ultimate in convenience, then it becomes clear to see why Amazon is the go-to place for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and almost any day in between.

The fightback of the independents

The High Street may have been left behind, and it may well never recover, but there is a breed of people that mean that there will always be other places to spend your cash at Christmas.

While Amazon has independent sellers, they also sell their own goods. What if you want something unique? Something handmade? Something a little bit special? The likes of Etsy has provided a market place for independent sellers who have managed to generate 6 figure businesses of their own.

So yes, Amazon may well be the biggest player out there, especially at Christmas, and the High Street may well be on its knees, but the independent sellers are fighting back and holding their own.

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