Dutch shoppers spent a record €6.36n online in the second quarter of this year, according to sector association Thuiswinkel.org, as the coronavirus pandemic kept people home.

While the overall increase was 12%, excluding services such as plane tickets and holidays, online sales rose 52% in the second quarter, Thuiswinkel.org said. And the total number of online shoppers rose 800,000 in the second quarter of the year, compared with the same period in 2019.

‘Many people have now discovered online shopping and coronavirus helped them to take that step,’ director Wijnand Jongen said. ‘Almost one million people bought something online for the first time and at least half of them are still doing so.’

DIY and garden centres booked the biggest increase, with an 121% rise in Q2 sales. Furniture store sales were up 105%, while food shops, including supermarkets, booked online sales of over €700m, a rise of 69%.

At the same time, however, spending on plane tickets and other services fell by 45% in the second quarter, due to the uncertainty about holidays and entertainment.