Families in UK will spend almost £700 each this Christmas, including gifts, decorations and food and drink, marginally more than last year despite the continuing tough economic climate, a report has predicted.
Shopping comparison site Kelkoo said spending will rise by one per cent, with gifts accounting for two-thirds of the total amount.
Britons will spend more on Christmas than anywhere else in Europe, averaging £682 per family, compared with £563 in Sweden, £548 in Germany, £492 in Italy, £453 in France and £390 in Holland, the study found.
Clothes and footwear, gadgets and electronics, toys and cosmetics will top the list of goods, with a quarter of money being spent ordering items online, said Kelkoo.
Online Christmas sales are expected to increase by almost £2 billion to £13.4 billion this year, according to research among 50 large retailers.
Chris Simpson, chief marketing officer at Kelkoo, said: “Although trading conditions are still challenging this year, it seems consumers are reluctant to cut back on festive season spending.
“Already we have seen retailers introducing early Christmas promotions in anticipation of tough competition, both on the high street and online.
“Securing sales in the run-up to Christmas is key, particularly with January sales starting as early as Christmas Eve.”
Meanwhile Christmas shoppers and tourists in London and the South East will have the opportunity to purchase their gifts elsewhere this year as Virgin Trains prepares to run three special trains to the North West shopping centres of Chester and Manchester.
On Thursday 1 December a yuletide charter will leave London Euston at 8.14 a.m. arriving in Chester at 11.22 a.m. where customers will be serenaded by a choir on the platform to get everyone in the festive spirit.
Return from Chester is at 5.23 p.m. allowing everyone plenty of time to purchase that special gift that may only be available in the historic city
Manchester has a fantastic range of stores many of them housed in the famous Arndale, the UK’s largest inner-city retail centre.
Shopping, however, can be combined with a visit to the fascinating Museum of Science and Industry housed in a former railway station or if pictures are you thing then the Manchester Art Gallery is just a short stroll from Piccadilly station.
Virgin Trains is the brand name of Virgin Rail Group (VRG), which is owned 51 per cent by Virgin Group and 49 per cent by Stagecoach. We have operated the West Coast passenger train franchise since 1997.