Earlier today, Internet Retailer announced an update to their Hot 100 List for 2008. This years Hot List features 100 different retailers where last years list only featured 50 sites. It would be hard for me to list only 50 (as it must have been for them), I am glad they bumped the number to 100, sounds better too.

By limiting ourselves to 50, it was becoming difficult to recognize all the outstanding sites that are in operation today. The market is expanding and the number of pace-setting sites is growing along with it.

It’s shaping up to be quite a year for Online sellers and there are many new sites on the list to keep your eye on in the year 2008. Some of my favorites from 2007 include Amazon, Cabelas, REI, Macy’s, PacSun, Walmart and many more. This year, those 6 eTailers made the list once again, along with 94 more hot eCommerce sites. Many of the sites are ones that I personally use to shop from both Online and Offline.

Hot 100 List Categories & Percent Graph:

Hot 100 List Sorted & Categorized:

Department Stores (3%)

• JC Penney
• Kohls.com
• Macy’s

Shopping/Products (4%)

• Amazon.com
• Buy.com
• Overstock.com
• Shop.com

Jewelry/Cosmetics (4%)

• BlueNile.com
• Carols Daughter
• JewelryTV.com
• Lancome-USA.com

Books/Music/Media (9%)

• Abebooks.com
• Audible.com
• BarnesandNoble.com
• eCampus.com
• FYE.com
• Indigo Books & Music
• Netflix
• ShopNBC.com
• ShopPBS.org

Electronics (10%)

• Abt.com
• Apple.com
• Dell.com
• HPShopping.com
• Palm
• PCConnection.com
• PCUniverse.com
• SonyStyle.com
• TigerDirect
• YourElectronicWarehouse.com

Outdoor/Sports (11%)

• Altrec Inc.
• BestKiteboarding.com
• Bodybuilding.com
• Cabela’s
• Dick’s Sporting Goods
• Golfballs.com
• Moosejaw Mountaineering
• Patagonia
• REI
• Swell
• Working Person’s Store

Clothing/Apparel/Shoes (17%)

• 6pm.com
• Abercrombie & Fitch
• AE.com
• Anthropologie
• BrooksBrothers.com
• Coach.com
• Gap
• Guess Jeans
• JCrew.com
• Karmaloop.com
• Nike.com
• Nine West
• PacSun.com
• Rampage.com
• Skechers
• Timberland
• Undergear

Gifts/Collectibles/Occasions (17%)

• 1-800-Flowers.com
• AmericanGreetings.com
• American Stationery
• Art.com
• Café Press
• DavidsBridal.com
• Delightful Deliveries Inc.
• GiftTree.com
• Harry & David
• KLWines.com
• Lake Champlain Chocolates
• LillianVernon.com
• MyMMs.com
• Romanicos.com
• Shutterfly
• Vivaterra.com
• Wine.com

Hardware/Home/Office (25%)

• Ace Hardware
• Bulbs.com
• Costco.com
• Crate and Barrel
• Diapers.com
• Drs. Foster and Smith
• Drugstore.com
• FoodNetworkStore.com
• Home Depot
• Levenger
• Lowe’s
• NetShops.com
• Oneida
• PetsUnited LLC (Network of Sites)
• View PlumberSurplus.com or Read Our Store Spotlight
• PowerEquipmentDirect
• RepairClinic.com
• Restoration Hardware
• Rockler.com
• View Stacks and Stacks or Read Our Store Spotlight
• Step2.com
• VeraBradley.com
• Vivre.com
• Walmart.com
• Williams-Sonoma

Article Motivation:

There are a couple of things that tend to bug me a little about these lists created by IR. For one, they are listing sites alphabetically, which is better than random, but still doesn’t do me any good unless I know the name of the site I am looking for, or at least what letter it starts with. Another thing that gets to me is that IR doesn’t link to any of the sites directly from the list. That is too bad, since I use guides like this to find new places to shop, new stores to blog about and a whole lot more, but always find myself having to copy and paste names into Google in order to physically visit the site I am interested in exploring. Lastly, it’s hard when there are different names on the list than the url or logo of the retailer. For instance, abt.com (on the list) is really abtelectronics.com (in the browser). This inconsistency makes it harder for me to remember the brands and keep them in my mind as ONE thing.

Due to these few things, I decided to put a different kind of list together that is categorized, alphabetically listed and graphed by category percent. I also linked to every one of the 100 hot sites so you don’t have to copy and paste them into Google. For now, I haven’t fixed up the consistency with anchor texts, urls and logos, but when I find some time I will take care of that too.

Here’s what Kurt T. Peters, Editor in Chief, had to say about the 2008 Hot 100…

We are pleased to recognize The Hot 100 for 2008. They reflect the best of what retailers can do online. Retailers in our Hot 100 represent the range of online retailing, from small to large, and include chains, catalogers, online-only merchants and brand name manufacturers. They have in common the willingness to innovate and set the standards in online retailing for what the rest of the industry should be doing.

Overall, I found the list to be a great resource for both shoppers and industry professionals who strive to make their site more like the 100 hottest in retail. Examining the sites here can certainly give merchants a better look at improving their processes and helps shoppers to discover new stores.