At the height of the pandemic, in February 2021, online sales took 35.6% of all retail trade as shoppers fled from the High Street. In contrast, the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) retail sales figures for January show that e-commerce sales collapsed by a hefty -20.8% compared to January 2021 and -4.5% compared to the previous month.

But the home delivery expert ParcelHero says that any reports of e-commerce’s death are greatly exaggerated. ParcelHero’s Head of Consumer Research, David Jinks M.I.L.T., said: “Online sales boomed to an extraordinary degree during the lockdowns. We are now seeing a natural rebalancing, as people return to High Streets that feel safer and more normal with the end of most Covid measures.

“However, online sales still represent 25.3% of all total retail sales, a considerable increase on the 19.8% online took back in February 2020, just before Covid hit the UK. The e-commerce genie has been released from the bottle, and it can never be put back.

‘Of course, we expect to see further falls in year-on-year online sales throughout 2022, as retail adjusts to the new norm, but e-commerce sales will hold firm at around 25% of the retail market. Shoppers have discovered how convenient online ordering is.

ParcelHero’s report ‘2030: Death of the High Street’ was discussed in Parliament. It revealed that unless retailers develop an omnichannel approach of embracing both online and physical store sales, the High Street as we know it will reach a dead-end by 2030.