• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, April 27, 2021

For marketers still trying to figure out what Mother’s Day ecommerce sales will look like this year, Udayan Bose, NetElixir founder and CEO, might have some answers.

This year, despite other predictions of consumers flocking to physical locations and stores, Bose estimates consumer spend online will rise. He says this Mother’s Day, online sales will grow at least by 30%, based on the company's data -- and the average order size for Mother’s Day is forecast to range between $238 and $240.

The National Retail Federation estimates consumers spent an average of $208 for Mother's Day in 2020.

As others have noted, the shift to ecommerce that retailers experienced in 2020 due to COVID-19 lockdowns is not temporary. Bose continues to track spikes in ecommerce by analyzing consumer buying behaviors.

In April 2020 vs 2019, categories in home furnishings, improvement and decor rose 78%. This year, so far, it has grown by 36%.

Bose saw online gifting rise in 2020 during Mother’s Day, about 80% year-over-year. This year he expects to see a 40% increase compared with 2020, based on new behavior.

“We believe Mother’s Day will kickstart a hyper-boom … and it will be the first event in which we experience real growth,” he said.

Mobile devices continue to drive more than 72% of all searches, although people are spending more time at home, which Bose attributes to ease of use. It’s becoming easier to complete a sale on mobile devices.

“We didn’t expect the percentage of sales to rise as much,” he said. “When we tracked mobile during 2020, it was about 43% of all sales, and rose to 48% during the holiday season.”

People are spending more. In February 2021, the personal saving rate in the United States amounted to 13.6%, down from 19.8% in January. Personal saving rate is calculated as the ratio of personal saving to disposable personal income, according to Statista.

“We are expecting consumers to buy more expensive gifts this year,” he said.