Stable Christmas Trading Expected: Furniture, Drugstore Goods and Large Appliances Boost E-Commerce

Despite subdued consumer sentiment, the e-commerce sector can look forward to a noticeably brighter Christmas season this year. In the first two months of the ongoing Christmas quarter (October and November), consumers spent 2.9 percent more online. Overall, the German E-Commerce and Distance Selling Trade Association (bevh) views the current Christmas season – and the start of the new year – with greater confidence than in previous years.

The Christmas surprise of 2025 is that gift sizes are expected to increase significantly. The Furniture & Home Furnishings category, for example, can expect a strong revenue increase of 9.1 percent. Household appliances (+8.7 percent) also performed well between October and November 2025. Only drugstore items, including cosmetics (+9.0 percent), recorded slightly higher growth. “The growth in the furniture and home furnishings segment shows that people currently place great value on making their homes comfortable and cozy. As a result, many gift parcels will be bigger this year,” says Martin Groß-Albenhausen, bevh Deputy Chief Executive.

Digital services – including giftable tickets, admission passes, travel bookings and more – saw a revenue increase of 9.9 percent according to bevh estimates, nearly returning to double-digit growth.

Everyday shopping shifts online
 

Especially for last-minute purchases ahead of the holidays, Germans are increasingly avoiding crowded shops and supermarkets. Instead, they prefer to buy via online grocery retailers (+6.1 percent) and online pharmacies (+4.5 percent). Consumer appetite remained below expectations, however, in the key categories electronics and telecommunications (+1.2 percent) as well as computers including accessories, games and software (+0.6 percent). The large category clothing and footwear (+0.1 percent) also stagnated in the consumer survey.

Independent online shops perform surprisingly well
 

More than the marketplaces (+3.6 percent), the surprisingly strong performance of online pure players (+4.8 percent) contributes to the positive outlook for the Christmas season. “Online pure players have proven that they can hold their own in tough competition with the marketplaces while offering customers the right inspiration and products for their gift shopping,” explains Martin Groß-Albenhausen. Only multichannel retail – the online shops of brick-and-mortar retailers – recorded lower revenues than in the previous year.

Nevertheless, Groß-Albenhausen expects a Christmas marked by confidence: “The year could end for e-commerce with the same hopeful note on which it began.”

Revenue Development in E-Commerce for Goods by Segment 
(All figures in millions of Euros, including VAT)
 

Revenue Development for Goods by Retailer Type 
(All figures in millions of Euros, including VAT)

(MCV: Multichannel-Retail, IPP: Internet- Pure-Player, APV: Online Pharmacy, SHC: Shoppingclub, OMP: Online-Marketplace, HEV: Brand Manufacturer, TVS: Teleshopping)