Online grocer Ocado has said it continued to turn in a profit after trading well over Christmas and the start of 2011.
The Hatfield-based firm, which delivers Waitrose products across much of the UK, reported that sales increased by 24.7% to £146.2 million in the 12 weeks to February 20.
Ocado, which floated on the stock market in July, claimed the business continued to be profitable in the first quarter of its financial year, after it made its first pre-tax profit in the three months to November 28.
Customer numbers increased although the average delivery size shrank by 1% to £118.06 as people ordered more frequently.
The figures include a strong festive period when sales were up 43.5% to £12.3 million in the week before Christmas after the group fitted snow tyres to its 700 vans to ensure deliveries would be met.
Ocado opened a depot in Bristol on Wednesday which will allow it to deliver to an additional one million households. It means its vans can now reach 70% of homes in the UK and can access south Wales for the first time.
Another new depot is expected to open in Wimbledon in May, which will allow the group to handle a further 14,000 orders a week.
Ocado is expanding its main distribution centre in Hatfield and plans to open a new distribution centre in the Midlands in 2013.
Chief executive Tim Steiner said: “Despite the economic headwinds in the UK, more and more consumers are seeing the benefits of online grocery shopping and we are increasing capacity to meet this demand.”
The group also plans to grow the business in 2011 by expanding its own-label range, which currently features more than 250 products.
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