Aussies facing the cost-of-living crunch have capitalised on the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, setting a record in Australian online shopping and parcel deliveries, according to the latest Australia Post parcel data1.
Australia Post’s parcel sending data from the cyber sales period, from 20 November to 3 December, revealed 5.2 million households made an online purchase, increasing by close to half a million on last year.
Other key findings from the data include:
- More than 53.5 million parcels were processed during November, up 1.4 per cent, and representing the biggest November ever recorded for Australia Post.
- Cyber weekend (24-27 November) was up 4.2 per cent on last year with Cyber Monday receiving 3.5m parcels (highest ever – 5.1% growth on last year).
- Queensland saw some of the strongest growth in online purchases year-on-year at 7.6 per cent, followed by Western Australia and the ACT, both at 7.5 per cent.
Australians have shown a love for fashion as the most popular purchase category experiencing year-on-year growth of 36 per cent. This was followed by athleisure with year-on-year growth of 22 per cent, footwear at 14 per cent, and sporting & outdoor goods at 11 per cent.
Australia Post Executive General Manager, Parcel, Post, and eCommerce Services Gary Starr said delivery teams are well equipped to meet the increased delivery demands.
“Cyber sales are clearly here to stay with more strategic shoppers taking advantage of the extended cyber sales period and stocking up ahead of Christmas.
“Customers can be assured that we’ve added more capacity across our workforce, including weekend deliveries, and more freighter capacity to manage the increased volume. We’ve also extended retail trading hours in select locations. We love this time of year and love being a part of delivering joy to people across the country.”
Australia Post also saw an uptick in App usage with 80,000 new users installing the Aus Post app for the first time during the cyber period. 18 million app pages were viewed during the cyber period, with the parcel tracking feature the most popular.
Australia Post is encouraging customers to get their Christmas gifts in the mail as the deadline for last sending dates fast approaches.
“We understand that while many have already made their purchases ahead of time, there are those who love a last-minute dash. We want to reassure customers that we are more prepared than ever to ensure that every parcel sent by our last sending dates will be delivered by Christmas.
“It is however important that customers understand that if they miss our Parcel Post and Express Post cut off dates there is a possibility their parcel will arrive after Christmas,” Mr. Starr emphasised.
To give items the best chance of arriving on time, parcels should be sent by Monday 18 December for most destinations within Australia, or if sending via Express Post by Thursday 21 December. People sending to or from Western Australia and Northern Territory should allow a few extra days.
[1] Australia Post parcel data and analytics for cyber sales period (20 November – 3 December).
(Australia Post)
