Shoe Zone reported that it had been reaping the benefits of the consumer trend for using smartphones when carrying out safe shopping online, riding the wave of mobile growth to make up for a reduction in sales activity on the high street.

Internet Retailing reports that the firm’s multichannel performance impressed in the first six months of 2017, with sales up by almost a third compared with the same period last year.

Purchases made via mobile platforms make up 66 per cent of all online spending, with three quarters of visits to the official Shoe Zone site now taking place from portable devices.

In a statement the company said that it was focusing on expanding its impact in the arena of safe shopping online, formulating strategies which will help it to offer even better experiences to mobile users in the future.

Company CEO, Nick Davis, explained that fluctuations in currency values had proved to be problematic so far this year, but indicated that things should improve over the rest of 2017, both as a result of online sales and the decision to open more ‘big box’ stores across the UK.

High street sales have been faltering in recent months, but out of town outlets are not suffering as much as their more central counterparts. Part of the reason for this is the popularity of click and collect delivery, which enables online shoppers to pick up their items on the same day they order them, as this is easier to do from a dedicated retail park.

With more people browsing the internet and buying online from their smartphones rather than via traditional PCs and laptops, m-commerce is quickly becoming the dominant part of the marketplace and no retailers can afford to ignore it for much longer.