John Lewis Christmas sales boosted by online growth and click & collect
John Lewis has reported that its sales rose by 5.8% year-on-year in the five weeks to 27 December as trade was boosted by strong online sales and click & collect orders.
Total sales reached £777 million in the period while like-for-like sales climbed by 4.8%.
Online sales rose by 19% year-on-year and accounted for 36% of total sales. Customers’ preferred delivery option was click & collect with 56% of online orders being collected in store to overtake home delivery. Sales in the shops remained level with last year.
John Lewis said it enjoyed a highly successful Black Friday which yielded an early sales peak and impacted the shape of trade over the five week period. It was the biggest week for sales in the retailer’s 150 year history with sales rising by 22% on last year.
Never Miss a Retail Update!In the five week period, electrical and home technology sales increased by 6.8% year-on-year while fashion sales grew by 7.8%. Meanwhile, home sales edged up 2.3%.
Popular gifts bought by customers included the NutriBullet juicer and wearable fitness trackers. Other items which sold well included cashmere, home fragrance, Nespresso coffee machines and the Kenwood kMix.
Andy Street, John Lewis managing director, said: “This year confirmed the new shape of trade for Christmas, with an early peak at the end of November driven by Black Friday and last minute gift buying.
“With Black Friday driving a higher proportion of online sales and customers increasingly wanting more convenience, this has meant a real concentration on fulfilment, making this a truly ‘Logistics Christmas’. The investments we have made and the new capabilities we have built in recent years in Distribution and IT have been fundamental in ensuring we successfully navigate this changing shape of trade.
“Underpinning all of this was the renowned service from John Lewis Partners in our shops and contact centres, as well as our ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ commitment which is ever more important in this era of price transparency.
“Our shops continue to have a critical role to play in the omnichannel shopping journey, and will be a major development focus for us over the coming months. To that end, we will be opening two further “At Home” shops in Horsham and Basingstoke in 2015 as well as our new regional flagship in the heart of Birmingham in September, which will set an exciting new benchmark in bricks and mortar retailing.”
