Two of the year’s biggest days of shopping have just been and gone, with analysts revealing that a total of just over £2 billion was spent by consumers in the UK during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, according to the Guardian.

The £1.1 billion in sales made on Black Friday alone represent a 36 per cent year on year increase, with Experian confirming that this was the first time that the billion pound mark had been breached in a single day of shopping.

One of the big winners was Amazon, which sold 7.4 million items online to customers across the UK on Black Friday. On the same day in 2014, it managed to hit only 5.5 million items sold, indicating the extent to which this event has become so important to consumers and retailers alike.

Cyber Monday’s haul was a little lower, with £934 million spent this year. And observers have pointed out that this shows the true paradigm shift that Black Friday has created, since in the past, it was Cyber Monday that saw an annual peak in safe shopping online.

In spite of the stellar web-based sales, some are concerned that the high street did not enjoy as much of the action during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The scenes of mayhem which punctuated the events last year were largely absent in 2015 and queues were smaller.

This is partly as a result of retailers choosing to extend offers across the entire weekend and into Monday, meaning that a four day spending bonanza was instigated.

The run-up to the festive season is always a key time for retailers, although by focusing sales into this small window at the end of November, it may be that December’s figures are less promising.