John Lewis sales for the week ending Saturday November 27 were just shy of £100m, showing shoppers were not deterred by the snowfall across the country.

Sales for the week were £99.94m, 13.5% up on last week and an 8.7% increase on the same week last year.

Sales of digital gifts and toys in particular drove the growth. Kids toys such as scooters, Butterscotch the animatronic pony, VTech cameras and the John Lewis wooden kitchen were among the most popular. The department store chain said televisions had a “stellar week” and gifts such as iPods, Kindles and iPads.

John Lewis price matched its competitors’ promotions, which it said drove demand for fashion and beauty in particular.

The cold weather also meant sales of everything from jackets to wellies were strong.

Nat Wakely, director of selling operations for John Lewis, said: “This week has been very strong. It’s clear that shoppers are appreciating the value we offer and our customer service as well as our broad and inspiring offer as they select gifts for all of the family. This week has focused not only on small children but those bigger ‘kids’ too for whom gadgets and electronics are looking like top gifts. The whole country saw a good result this week with the north and Scotland defying the snow and Oxford Street in the south recording its best ever November week, no doubt boosted by West End VIP day.”

The chain said johnlewis.com had a record week, exceeding its previous biggest week by almost £3m.

Topics