Verdict Research: This report provides in-depth insight into the UK mail order market including detailed profiles of 10 of the leading mail order operators. The report studies market trends, including growth and value in the agency, direct and door-to-door markets and highlights the issues facing mail order retailers with responses necessary for specialists to compete in this challenging sector.

Scope

Ten years' data on market value and growth rates in the overall market, plus five year trends in market segments agency, direct and door-to-door. Market shares of 10 major operators five years' historical data to 2007, including shares of separate market segments. Key operating statistics for each retailer, including trading record, operating margins and analysis of retail proposition and catalogue portfolio.

Highlights

In 2007 the £9.9bn mail order market enjoyed its strongest growth for nine years at 6.2%, reversing four years of decline. This has been driven primarily by direct and niche operators who are targeting specific customer groups effectively, and from new business developments, with the Tesco Direct catalogue the most significant. The traditional Big Three operators underperformed, losing 1.8 percentage points year-on-year and continued to be unprofitable. Their participation in the agency sector was a factor agency business declined a further 6.1% in 2007 to £1.4bn, suppressing overall growth and dragging down any gains made in the direct sector (which grew by 10.8%). Online has become the most important channel of distribution for mail order retailers, producing £4bn of sales. Online ordering generated nearly 41.0% of all sales in the £9.9bn market in 2007. The result is that mail order operators have doubled their share of total online expenditure over the past five years, from 19.5% in 2002 to 38.1% in 2007.

Reasons to Purchase

Identify trends and opportunities in the market using the 10 year historical market data, plus the channel analysis and market shares. Understand the key issues that face mail order specialists enabling you to make well-informed strategic decisions. Seize growth opportunities from the identification of competitive threats and recommended responses.