New study shows Irish shoppers love a deal — especially when it comes to iPhone cables

A survey of online spending has confirmed Irish people love a daily deal, with almost €130 being spent every minute.

According to MyDealPage.ie, consumers spend €129 every minute of the day on deals, more than ever before, with estimated annual growth of over 20% in the sector.

Accommodation accounted for 25% of all revenue last year, with retail and services accounting for 25% of all vouchers sold, with bed linen and car servicing among the most popular choices.

The most popular deal last year was Living Social’s offer of a Nifty Spot extra-long 3m USB cable for iPhone/ iPod, with 5,100 sold. Food at Captain America’s and Thunder Cafe and vouchers for Dublin Bus were also popular with buyers.

Sites like Groupon, GrabOne, LivingSocial, and Pigsback are among those attracting Irish consumers to daily deals. Consumers spent €68m on online deals last year, and figures for the first quarter of 2014 shows turnover of €16.5m, indicating this year’s total could top €70m.

MyDealPage.ie estimated consumers have collectively saved more than €105m in the past year through online shopping with deal providers, and claimed 50 new jobs could be created this year to add to the 150 already in the sector.

Charles Maltha, MyDealPage.ie co-founder said: “Online spending is expected to grow to €21bn by 2017 and the daily deal space is following this trend.

“Deal sites and businesses have evolved a lot over the past year and are now working closer together to generate value for all parties involved.”

In past years people were more likely to buy a deal during the morning working hours, but now more spending is conducted in the evening. Consumers now tend to use smartphones and tablets while commuting, with one-in-three daily deals now purchased via a mobile device.

See the full report here.