Sales and orders topped 1999's peak holiday-driven fourth quarter - Q4 1999 brought in $7.25 billion while this year's Q1 saw $8.15 billion. Similarly, orders jumped from 70 million in Q4 to 75 million in the Q1.
Categories showing growth above the 12% industry average included entertainment (35%), computer goods (30%), and gifts and flowers (14%). The most dramatic losers for the quarter were, not surprisingly, popular holiday categories including food and wine (-60%) and toys and hobbies (-72%).
Other findings included: - Quarter to quarter, the average purchase amount per order increased 6% from $103 to $109
- First-time merchant buyers accounted for 63% of online sales, dominating the quarter
- Average household income dropped a slight 4% from $81,200 in Q4 1999 to $78,000
- 54% of new online orders came from female buyers. For more information on who buys what, where, when and what the totals are -- see eMarketer's eCommerce: B2C Report