London tube strike leads to online sales increase for Lyst

By

Cajsa Lykke Carlson

Published
Jul 10, 2015

As thousands of Londoners opted to or were forced to work from home during the tube strike on July 9, it seems many took the opportunity to also do a bit of online shopping.

UK fashion e-tailer Lyst saw a massive 116% increase in site traffic from the London area between 6am and midday, compared with the usual Thursday morning average. The company expects the numbers to have increased even more as the afternoon progressed.

Mobile visits rose as commuters faced long waits stuck in traffic, and accounted for 58% of the traffic between 6am and 10am. The most-searched for pieces during the tube strike were holiday items: womens and men’s beachwear, summer dresses, sunglasses and travel accessories, with lace-up gladiator sandals the best-sellers for the early part of the day.

Lyst says there were a number of factors "encouraging Londoners to shop their way through the strike", including the fact that it's just one week after payday, the summer sales are still going and some retailers were offering same-day delivery options for those working from home in the capital.