Boots delivers strong first quarter following record Black Friday online sales
Boots has delivered a strong first quarter performance with retail sales up 9.8% in the three months to 30 November.
The uplift marks an 11th consecutive quarter of market share growth for the health and beauty retailer.
Boots said boots.com achieved its biggest-ever month of sales in November and biggest-ever day of sales on Black Friday. Online sales now account for 19.2% of the retailer’s total retail sales after boots.com sales grew by 17.5% in the period.
Store sales were also strong, rising by over 7% in Black Friday week.
Seb James, managing director of Boots UK and ROI, said: “I am very encouraged by the way in which people are responding to the changes that we have made, especially in our digital and beauty businesses. It is really good to see that market share has grown for the eleventh quarter in a row showing that more customers are choosing Boots.”
The retailer was boosted by an 11.4% increase in beauty sales in the quarter, driven by the continued good performance in its skincare and premium beauty categories.
Meanwhile, haircare sales rose by 10% following the launch of ten professional and salon haircare brands on boots.com,
While the retailer will report on its Christmas sales performance as part of second quarter report later in the year, it said early indications suggest a strong Christmas period with sales from Black Friday week until the New Year beating last year’s performance.
James added: “This strong start to the year, together with a good Christmas, sets us up well for another good year and I would like to thank most sincerely all of my colleagues for their hard work and resilience over this vital trading period.”
