John Lewis festive sales up 7.6%

Department store John Lewis has shrugged off the impact of Britain’s freezing weather conditions as it revealed a 7.6% hike in festive sales.

The group notched up sales of £545 million in the five weeks to January 1 as online buying soared during the first snowfall. Shop trade then took over as consumers sought the reassurance of having goods in their hands.

John Lewis said total sales rose 8.9% – by 7.6% on a same-store basis – while online sales increased 42% on last year and have now reached more than £500 million for the year to date. The store said it broke records once again, with sales of £121 million in one week and a haul of £27.8 million for one day of trading in December.

The wider partnership also reported figures for its Waitrose supermarket arm, which showed the chain’s best Christmas, with total sales up 8.9% and like-for-like growth of 5.4% to December 23.

Figures showed like-for-like sales growth for the John Lewis store was markedly slower than the 12.7% seen the previous Christmas in a sign that it saw some snow impact. It was forced to bring forward the deadline for pre-Christmas orders by three days as weather conditions hampered deliveries.

The pace of sales growth also slowed sharply in the week between Boxing Day and New Year – up 2.6% on a like-for-like basis, although the group said it traded for five days this year against six previously due to bank holidays.

Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, said: “Our success confirms our strength as a multichannel retailer. This capability was particularly important during the adverse weather. Online sales soared during the first snowfall as customers struggled to get to the shops.

“When the weather turned for a second time closer to Christmas, shoppers wanted the reassurance of having their goods in their hands and our shops saw sales surge as a result.”

John Lewis has 28 department stores, four home outlets and the johnlewis.com website.

Its electricals and home technology was the best-performing department over Christmas, with sales up 14.4%. Fashion sales rose by 8.7% while home sales were up 4.7%. The group said top-selling items in its post-Christmas clearance sales included televisions, computers, beds and bedding, sofas, towels and furnishings.