November saw an early surge in online shopping, with the Cyber Sales weekend driving record sales as shoppers chased value and ticked off their Christmas shopping well ahead of time. This period resulted in Australia Post’s busiest delivery day on record, with more than 3 million parcels delivered on Monday 8 December.
7.9 million Australian households shopped online in November and December, representing an increase of 300,000 households compared to last year. This year’s standout shopping categories included Athleisure (up 24.7% year-on-year (YoY)), Women’s Fashion (up 21.2% YoY) and Department Stores (up 15.7% YoY).
Across the country, the strongest YoY growth in number of online purchases was seen in Western Australia (up 15.2% YoY), followed by Queensland (up 10% YoY), South Australia (up 9% YoY) and New South Wales (up 8.3% YoY). The top three postcodes for online shopping were Toowoomba and Mackay (QLD) and Point Cook (VIC) while Richmond (VIC), Bondi Junction (NSW) and Geelong (VIC) used Australia Post’s speed services the most.
Australia Post Executive General Manager Parcel, Post, and eCommerce services Gary Starr said Australia Post delivered 3,075 parcels every minute and 2 million deliveries a day for more than 30 days.
“These results are the product of months of detailed planning, continued investment in our operations and network capacity, and the extraordinary effort of our team members nationwide — working around the clock to keep parcels moving when it matters most.
“What stands out most this year is how much our customers have shaped the way we operate. Their need for greater reliability, easier ways to manage deliveries, and a more seamless online-to-doorstep experience have shaped every enhancement we’ve made. We’ve listened closely, and those insights have helped deliver one of our strongest peak performances yet.
“As we turn our attention to the year ahead, we’re already preparing for the next peak period and identifying new ways to support our customers in a fast-evolving eCommerce landscape. Retailers brought sales forward earlier than previous years, and shoppers responded in force — with cyber-weekend sales rising 6.3% year-on-year as Aussies increasingly seek out smarter, value-driven ways to shop,” Mr Starr said.
Over this period 5.7 million Australians turned to the AusPost app to track their parcels with over 119 million app visits, meaning more customers were able to easily manage their delivery experience.