Waitrose sales up 3.1% last week boosted by sales of food with a ‘wow factor’
Waitrose saw a 3.1% year-on-year increase in sales last week as its customers began preparing for Christmas in earnest. Week-on-week, sales were up by 9%.
The supermarket’s retail director Rob Collins has reported a “significant trend” for customers searching out food and drink with a ‘wow factor’.
Some of the most popular items were celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal’s Heston from Waitrose chocolate box, sales of which soared 20-fold compared to the week before. In addition, the supermarket sold four times as many Heston from Waitrose Earl Grey and mandarin stollens as the week before, while sales of Heston puff pastry mince pies with pine sugar dusting surged by 180%.
Waitrose Entertaining, the supermarket’s online party and entertaining ordering service, experienced the same trend as customers sought out something different or special for their Christmas dinner table. Sales of the ‘Jubilee rib’ of beef – big enough to serve 20 people – were 50% up on the same week last year while sales of the ‘ballotine’ of turkey, chicken and duck centrepiece were 71% ahead of last year’s orders.
Never Miss a Retail Update!Looking at desserts, Waitrose said its Christmas pudding ice cream had captured customers’ imaginations with sales up 24% compared to last year and 142% up on the previous week.
Another stand-out performer was the Waitrose Seriously Plummy Dessert Wine, sales of which rose 58% on the same week last year.
