Consumer frenzy Even without Christmas, e-tailing has posted remarkable growth the past year. UMKC's Brown has a theory about the increase. E-tailers have lured many customers online with product discounts. Brown's study for Valentine Radford, which surveyed more than 1,700 Internet shoppers, found that 88 percent of them expected to find better deals online. But new online shoppers are coming from all age and income brackets, Brown said.
Many shoppers still are concerned about security issues on the Internet.
But security services and better encryption devices seem to be alleviating consumer fears. That leads Brown and other experts to think that, if the holiday troubles from 1999 repeat themselves this year, consumers won't turn away from shopping on the Web. If they have trouble with Sears, they'll go to Wal-Mart. HireKansasCity Fill an opening, find a job Insurance Center Covering the needs of small business owners Legal Center Hundreds of business legal tools Office Products Special deals on equipment, supplies.