John Lewis sales given electricals boost

Electricals sales rose 28.2% fuelled by shoppers buying e-readers before summer holidays. Online sales were also strong, up by 36.1% with good performances in all areas for the week to June 23.

Fashion sales enjoyed a strong week at John Lewis, up 6.9% compared to the same week last year, driven by the start of the retailer’s Clearance Sale.

Womenswear was the leading performer, up 9.9%, powered by a 36% increase in branded wholesale product.

Menswear also had a good week increasing 6.8% as customers bought into accessories which were up 14% and branded casualwear which was up 8.6%.

Women’s footwear and accessories also had a good week, up 17% and 27% respectively.

The best performing branch of John Lewis was Poole with sales increasing 26.8%. Swindon, Trafford and Aberdeen also all enjoyed strong sales.

Peter Ruis buying and brand director at John Lewis said: “With three days under our belt, it’s a little too early to call our Clearance performance, but good availability and second markdowns at the end of the week give us a great opportunity for another strong week of trade.”

Sales at Waitrose nudged up 1.8% driven by sales of snack food purchased to celebrate the European Championships.

Sales of chicken Kiev, which originated in the city that played host to England’s game with Italy, saw a 50% increase on last year.

The John Lewis Clearance sale, which started on Thursday, resulted in the highest number of click and collect orders at Waitrose on record, with sales of £2.2m.