John Lewis sales up 1.4% last week
The John Lewis department store chain grew its sales by 1.4% year-on-year last week despite snow in some parts of the country affecting trade.
Electricals and home technology sales were up 7.5% driven by strong sales in the retailer’s own brand audio products and mobile category. John Lewis also benefited from new launches such as the next generation Dyson V10 cordless vacuum cleaner and the Samsung S9 mobile phone.
Fashion sales increased by 1.8% as customers stocked up on own brand cashmere due to the cold weather. Beauty sales were up 18.1% on last year, partly due to customers taking advantage of a price-matching event.
Meanwhile, home sales were down 5.4% although sales in the gift food category saw a rise of 27% as customers purchased treats ahead of the Easter break.
Sienne Veit, director of online product at John Lewis, said: “This week we open our 50th shop at White City, Westfield London which shows our latest thinking on how the department store can be a place in which customers can shop, do and learn in a way they haven’t been able to before.”
