ADVISORY/Online Holiday Shopping Strong, Study Says.

Business Editors

ADVISORY...

--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 19, 2000

TOPIC: Despite worries by many companies, online shopping sales appear to be up
this holiday season, with huge increases in some categories, such as clothing,
according to a story by MSNBC. The number of online shoppers reportedly has
increased about 53 percent since the beginning of the season, compared with a
40 percent surge in shoppers last year, according to data from
Nielsen/NetRatings, the story said. The total weekly visits to shopping sites
is up 78 percent since the end of October, the survey found. Clothing sites
have seen a 130 percent hike since the beginning of the shopping season, the
story said, but shoppers searching for toys have had difficulty finding items
in stock. EXPERTS: ExpertSource can offer several highly qualified experts to
comment on this story:

Ms. Patti Bodner is vice president of hottopic.com -- the e-commerce web site for Hot Topic, a mall-based specialty retailer of music-licensed and music-influenced apparel, accessories and gift items for young men and women principally between the ages of 12 and 22. The company currently operates 250 stores in 44 states throughout the United States. 626/839-4681; [e-mail]

Prof. Michelle B. Kunz is an associate Professor of Marketing, in the Department of Management and Marketing at Morehead State University. She has experience and knowledge of online shopping, consumers and electronic commerce. 606/783-5479

Mr. James Gagne is Chief Communications Officer for Planalytics. Planalytics is a supply chain planning portal serving three vertical markets: retail, agriculture, and energy. Planalytics provides additional vital future intelligence into supply chain planning, quantifying how, where, and when weather, economic, demographic, and competitive shifts from year to year will affect supply and demand for specific products and services. He has several experts who can comment on consumer motivation and behavior, forecasting consumer demand, retail sales trends, holiday sales, and the effect of weather on sales and the economy. 610/407-2956; [e-mail]

ExpertSource cannot guarantee the immediate availability of these experts or their familiarity with this specific issue.

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