Shoppers ignored Amazon’s corporate tax wrangle and visited its website in their droves in the run-up to Christmas as UK traffic surged 49% year-on-year in December.
The figures, collated by Experian, contradict speculation that many consumers would be avoiding the online giant in the wake of the corporate tax avoidance scandal in which Amazon was one of the main protagonists.
John Lewis boss Andy Street claimed that the department store had experienced a sales boost due to the consumer backlash against Amazon in December.
He told Retail Week earlier this month: “I can’t prove it but the fact John Lewis is seen as the good guy helps us be seen as a business you’d want to do business with.”
However, in the immediate aftermath of the controversy - which reached a crescendo on November 12 when Amazon, Starbucks and Google appeared in front of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee - visitor numbers soared to Amazon.co.uk.
Traffic to its site soared 53% in between November 12 to 25, compared to the two weeks prior to the tax hearing.
Experian Marketing Services digital insight manager James Murray said the retailer had a spectacular Christmas in which it “consolidated its position as the UK’s most popular department store”.
He said: “No matter what consumers want to buy, more often than not, they will go to Amazon as a first port of call.”
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