Britain’s £61m weekend after-hours shopping spree

Britons could be spending an estimated £61 million online during just eight late-night hours every weekend, according to new analysis from UK retail comparison platform Shopping.co.uk.

The estimate examines activity between 11.30pm and 3.30am on Friday and Saturday nights, when consumers continue searching, clicking and buying long after traditional shops have closed their doors.

Based on average weekly UK online retail sales of around £2.64 billion and an estimated 2.3% of weekly online activity taking place during the late-night weekend window, Shopping.co.uk calculates that around £60.8 million of online retail spending could take place during those eight hours, equivalent to approximately £7.6 million an hour.

And activity doesn’t disappear as midnight passes either, analysis of 31,600 search and referral activity by the company over a 12-week period found that it peaked at around 12.47am, while activity between 12.30am and 1.30am was 41% higher on Friday and Saturday nights than during the equivalent period from Monday to Thursday.

What people are looking for in the small hours is also revealing, with vitamins and supplements, make-up and skincare among the products most frequently searched for, alongside fashion accessories and phone and technology products.

The findings raise a much wider question about the way modern Britain shops, in that, have we created the perfect conditions for impulse spending at exactly the time our judgement may be at its weakest?

Ten years ago, an impulse to buy a new outfit, television or piece of furniture at 1am would probably have had to wait until the following morning. Today, the combination of smartphones, stored payment details, retail apps, one-click checkout and facial recognition means the gap between wanting something and paying for it can be reduced to a matter of seconds.

Jared Owen, retail expert at Shopping.co.uk, said: “We have always impulse shopped but what is different today is the environment in which that impulse happens and the extraordinary speed at which it can turn into a financial transaction.

“At 1am you may be tired, distracted or scrolling without really thinking about it, you may have had a few drinks, and you are almost certainly using a device that already contains your passwords, your payment information and, increasingly, your entire wallet.

“Then add one-click checkout, stored card details and the fact that the shop quite literally never closes, and almost every natural pause that used to exist between wanting something and buying it has disappeared.

“That raises an interesting question for the retail industry…have we inadvertently created the perfect conditions for impulse spending at exactly the point when consumers may be least inclined to stop, think and compare?”

The psychology behind it

Psychotherapist Eloise Skinner, says: “Shopping late at night could have several significant impacts on our behaviour. Firstly, if we're tired or under the influence of alcohol, we might not be as focused or alert to what we're doing, so mindless scrolling can take over intentional purchases or focused periods of shopping.

“We might also be chasing a hit of dopamine around this time, especially if we're delaying going to bed - we might see the shopping as a treat or rebellion from our regular routine, making it more likely that we'll engage in impulsive purchasing."

Owen continues: “It’s meant to be enjoyable and there is absolutely nothing wrong with buying something spontaneously. What is interesting is how differently we can behave depending on the circumstances we are in. If you are scrolling through your phone on the sofa or in bed, tired after a long week or home from a night out, the £20 or £30 difference between two retailers can suddenly feel less important than simply pressing the easiest button.

“And that is particularly interesting to us as a price comparison business, because the moments when somebody is least inclined to compare can actually be the moments when comparison matters most.

“The pause does not necessarily mean deciding not to buy, it might simply mean taking another thirty seconds to see whether somebody else is selling exactly the same thing for less.”

Kam Kaur from Glasgow admits to being a late-night shopper because of her work in the care sector.

“I get home late, look after the kids and the household and very quickly time is swallowed up.

"My late night shopping is a time for me that fits around my own personal lifestyle and I’m often still wide awake and very alert, so conscious buying is part of my lifestyle and I often spend around £200-300 each month during the early hours.”

Shopping.co.uk analysed almost 1,000 live retailer prices across some of Britain’s most commonly purchased products and found an average £70 difference between the cheapest available retailer and the typical retailer price.