Irish retailers are being warned they need to face the challenge of online shopping head-on.
A new report by Retail Ireland claims the digital era is having a dramatic knock-on effect - with Christmas 2017 showing record online sales.
However, with an estimated 70% of online sales going outside Ireland - the group's director Thomas Burke says retailers must get up to speed with the future.
He said: "Certainly Irish consumers are moving online quite quickly and Irish retailers are going to have to follow them there and offer them what they want in terms of the price and product despite the challenges that may exist in terms of broadband."