John Lewis sales lifted by weather
John Lewis has reported higher weekly sales for the week ending 16 July as the poor weather drove shoppers to its stores and summer sale.
Total sales increased 3.7% to £59.9 million.
Fashion sales rose by 4% but trade was impacted by the unpredictable weather evidenced by sales of Barbour jackets being up 100% on last year.
Home had a mixed week, up only 1%, with sales of gifts and home accessories balancing out the tougher market conditions in big ticket areas such as furniture. However, EHT delivered the strongest performance with sales up 8.5% on last year.
Of the branches, the London stores performed best with sales at Peter Jones up 9.9% and Oxfford Street up 6.2%
Online sales were up 31% with the new product ratings and review service proving popular with customers.
Paula Nickolds, buying director, Home, John Lewis said: “As we move out of Clearance this week, inspiring our customers with the best of our new season’s product will become the focus. The volume of new product in our shops is significantly higher than previous years, and the strong sales we are already seeing on new full-price stock should give us real confidence in the offer we have for the crucial second half.”