AUGUST 2008

May 08
1 = 1 Amazon UK www.amazon.co.uk
2 5 Argos www.argos.co.uk
3 = 3 Play.com play.com
4 = 4 Tesco.com www.tesco.com
5 9 Next www.next.co.uk
6 = 6 Amazon.com www.amazon.com
7 11 Thomson Holidays www.thomson.co.uk
8 7 Marks & Spencer www.marksandspencer.com
9 8 Tesco Direct direct.tesco.com
10 = 10 easyJet www.easyjet.co.uk
11 12 Expedia.co.uk www.expedia.co.uk
12 17 lastminute.com www.lastminute.com
13 14 RyanAir www.ryanair.com
14 15 John Lewis www.johnlewis.com
15 26 PC World www.pcworld.co.uk
16 18 ASOS www.asos.com
17 13 Dell EMEA www.euro.dell.com
18 20 Currys www.currys.co.uk
19 2 Apple Computer www.apple.com
20 16 HMV.co.uk www.hmv.co.uk
21 25 Thomas Cook www.thomascook.com
22 24 Ebuyer www.ebuyer.com
23 28 Comet UK www.comet.co.uk
24 38 Woolworths UK www.woolworths.co.uk
25 NEW Staples www.staples.co.uk
26 23 B&Q www.diy.com
27 45 Odeon Cinemas www.odeon.co.uk
28 22 Ticketmaster UK www.ticketmaster.co.uk
29 = 29 First Choice www.firstchoice.co.uk
30 19 British Airways www.britishairways.com
31 30 Debenhams www.debenhams.com
32 21 GAME shop.game.net
33 32 Screwfix Direct www.screwfix.com
34 27 O2 Shop shop.o2.co.uk
35 BACK LOVEFiLM www.lovefilm.com
36 31 ASDA www.asda.co.uk
37 BACK Vue Entertainment www.myvue.com
38 33 Topshop www.topshop.co.uk
39 35 Littlewoods www.littlewoods.com
40 = 40 Travelodge UK www.travelodge.co.uk
41 48 TravelRepublic.co.uk www.travelrepublic.co.uk
42 37 The Orange Shop shop.orange.co.uk
43 34 River Island www.riverisland.com
44 42 Sainsbury's www.sainsburys.com
45 36 QVCUK.com www.qvcuk.com
46 47 Carphone Warehse www.carphonewarehouse.com
47 46 Boots www.boots.com
48 39 HP www.hp.com
49 50 Thomsonfly www.thomsonfly.com
50 43 Symantec Store www.symantecstore.com

The IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops List of the top 50 UK e-retailers* is the key indicator of online merchant
performance. The List is published quarterly and tracks popularity, as indicated by visits, of those selling goods
and services within the IMRG Capgemini Index Classification**. This List is based on July 2008 data.
* The IMRG-Hitwise Hot Shops List excludes eBay and price comparison / aggregator websites such as Kelkoo and Froogle.

** IMRG Capgemini Index Classification: Beer / wine / spirits; Books; CDs / tapes / records; Clothing / footwear / accessories; Computer hardware /
peripherals / consumables; Consumer electronics; Digital downloads (e.g. music, software); Flowers; Food, beverages and household supplies; Furniture;
Garden / DIY; Health and beauty; Home appliances (e.g. washing machines); Household goods (e.g. kitchenware, bedding); Jewellery / watches;
Software; Sporting goods; Tickets (e.g. cinema, theatre, events); Toys; Travel (e.g. flights, holidays, hotels, car hire); Video games; Videos / DVDs

© IMRG 2008 www.imrg.org +44 (0) 7000 46 46 74

 SINCE MAY 2008

NEW BACK =
1 2 18 22 7
This tenth quarterly Hot Shops List is notable for rises in the Electrical and Fashion sectors,
while Computer companies fell as consumers, with hard times looming, adjusted their
priorities. The only new entrant was Staples, which roared in halfway up the List at 25.
Amazon.co.uk (1) as ever, and Argos (2) and Play (3) as usual, led the field while Tesco (4)
held on to its habitual fourth position.
The first fashion brand into the top five, Next (5) was definitely hot, reaching its highest ever
th th
ranking, up from 9 place in May and 11 place a year ago. ASOS’s (16) stellar
performance continued, climbing another two positions since May and a massive thirty
th th
places from the 46 slot it occupied a year ago. ASOS ranked 50 in the first ever Hot
Shops List, published in May 2006.
Electrical e-retailers also had a strong month. PC World (15) reached its all-time high,
th rd th
having risen from 26 place in May, 23 a year ago and the 36 slot the year before that.
Woolworths stormed up the List to 24, having jumped 14 places since May, and seventeen
st
places from its 41 ranking a year ago.
John Lewis (14) continued its inexorable climb up the Hot Shops List to its best position to
th
date, up another place from last quarter and improving on the 18 position it occupied last
August.
Ebuyer (22) was on the rise again; it was up two places since last time, having first entered
the List in May 2007.
The Entertainment sector benefitted from July’s poor weather, with Odeon Cinemas (27)
th
rising from 45 in May, and LOVEFiLM (35) popping in for the second time, having debuted
on the List at 37 in February this year.
Not so hot were the computer companies: Dell (17), Apple (19) and HP (48) fell four,
seventeen and nine places respectively from their rankings in May, and three, eleven and
five places on the year.

IMRG's CEO, James Roper, comments:

“With the market hardening under the daily hammer blows of worsening economic news,
one would expect more volatility within the List. It is a measure of the competence that sets
these brands out as market leaders that they consistently continue to attract high customer
traffic volumes, even under harsh trading conditions. The e-retail sector continues to enjoy
double-digit growth, which is good news for the twenty seven high street brands that now
appear on the Hot Shops List, as their traditional channel’s sales falter. If a recession does
come it will bias change in favour of e-commerce practitioners such as these.”

Hitwise's Director of Research, Robin Goad, comments:

“We always see travel companies improve their ranking during this quarter, and this year is
no different. However, despite the eleven travel brands on the list having moved up
compared with last quarter, they are all down when compared with the same quarter last
year. While this is partly a reflection of the sector’s maturity, it also points towards the
negative impact of rising fuel prices and the squeeze on consumer spending as a result of
the credit crunch. However, one sector that continues to perform well is fashion, with both
Next and ASOS achieving their highest ever rankings this quarter.”

© IMRG 2008 www.imrg.org +44 (0) 7000 46 46 74

MEDIA ENQUIRES
IMRG HITWISE
Paul Evans Jannie Cahill
Tel: +44 (0) 7000 46 46 74 Tel: +44 (0) 7378 3619
Email: paul@imrg.org Email: jannie.cahill@hitwise.com
Web: www.imrg.org Web: www.hitwise.co.uk
About IMRG: IMRG (Interactive Media in Retail Group), founded in 1990, is the industry
association serving e-retail: www.imrg.org
About Hitwise: Hitwise, established in 1997, is the leading online competitive
intelligence service: www.hitwise.co.uk

© IMRG 2008 www.imrg.org +44 (0) 7000 46 46 74