The home delivery expert ParcelHero says 10am Monday is now the most popular time of the week for online purchases, as we all look to retail therapy to beat the Monday blues. Its data reveals online sales jump by 15%-20% above average just as we all settle back into the working week.

Does that mean we are all cyberslacking, using our work computers to indulge in some Monday morning internet shopping? ParcelHero says it’s all down to the impact of Covid.

ParcelHero’s Head of Consumer Research, David Jinks M.I.L.T., says: ‘You might imagine that lazy Sunday afternoons are the top time for a spot of bargain-hunting on Amazon or ASOS. In fact, it’s miserable Mondays that see the peak of online shopping.

‘How is it that Monday morning is now the week’s most popular time for shopping when, supposedly, most of us are back in the office after the weekend? Are we all peeping cautiously over the top of our screens to check if our manager is near before we hit the Buy button?

‘Not so long ago, many of us wouldn’t have had access to a PC or laptop at work. However, the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal 67.1% of workers now have access to a computer at work. That figure grew rapidly during Covid as more businesses became reliant on e-commerce sales and Zoom calls.

‘Interestingly, it’s microbusinesses employing less than 10 people who have the highest proportion of staff with access to a computer. 74.7% of very small businesses give their staff access to the internet, as opposed to just 63.1% of large companies employing over 1,000 people.

‘Of course, not all of us are in the office on a Monday morning anymore. Following Covid, working from home has become far more established. Currently, around 38% of us “WFH” one or more days a week. The UK workspace app NearU has found Monday is now the most popular day of the week to work from home. That means many of us shopping on a Monday morning are likely to be browsing at home. Looking at our data, perhaps the acronym WFH should be changed to SFH: shopping from home.

‘However, before employers jump to the conclusion that there’s more shopping than working going on, it’s likely home workers more than make up for their little bit of shopping time. The prestigious Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) says 41% of employers believe homeworking has increased their organisation’s productivity, while only 18% feel it has decreased productivity.

‘Retired people are also shopping online in ever-increasing numbers. Age UK says 58% of over-75s now regularly use a computer. They don’t need to worry about their boss popping up on the other side of their screen – or whether their online activities are being monitored by the IT department.

‘ParcelHero’s data reveals a Monday morning surge of at least 15% over average booking levels between 10 and 12am. That’s because the many e-commerce sellers who use our service to fulfil orders are booking pickups for sales that have just come in. That’s a strong indication of how busy online retailers are on a Monday morning.

‘These figures are supported by the latest research from the UK e-commerce retail specialist SaleCycle, which confirms both a 10am peak in online shopping and that Monday has become the busiest online shopping day. It has now usurped Thursday, which was the peak pre-pandemic.

‘To find out about the ways in which suppliers, retailers and their partner logistics companies are collaborating to reduce delivery costs and improve customer experience, whatever the day, see ParcelHero’s study on “Dark Stores” and the High Street of the future at: https://www.parcelhero.com/research/shop-of-the-future