House of Fraser believes it has become the first online retailer to see 50 per cent of its online traffic coming from mobile devices. ASOS, by comparison, saw 20 per cent of its traffic come from mobile in January.

Although the company already has a mobile site, it is redesigning this and its desktop platform to offer more of the services that have been successful on its iOS app. This includes a stock locator function, which gives users the option to buy online or go in store. It is will also be extending its buy and collect hours to accommodate these shoppers.

“We’re increasingly becoming a nation of ‘on the go shoppers’ and as one of the largest online retail destinations, we need to ensure we’re providing our customers with innovative solutions to suit their busy lifestyles,” said Andy Harding, executive director for multichannel at House of Fraser. “Designing for mobile and tablet devices before desktop versions will soon become the norm and is a change we’ve already implemented.  Having initially launched the ‘stock locator’ on the app it was a natural progression to offer this popular feature on the main website.”