Waitrose and John Lewis sales both rise
Sales at the John Lewis Partnership rose 9.1 per cent in the week to March 10.

Waitrose sales shot up 10 per cent over the period, largely driven by mild weather and sales of Fairtrade, Mother's Day and Easter ranges.

Sales at John Lewis department stores were up 7.6 per cent for the week, although the warmer weather meant shoppers stayed away to enjoy the sunshine on Saturday.

Furniture and textiles were the winning category with beds and bedroom furniture, living and upholstery and outdoor living categories all performing strongly.

Accessories, gift food, silverwear and frames were also strong because of the earlier Mother's Day and Easter periods. Kitchenwear continues to thrive and there were strong sales of computers and large electrical items.

In clothing, menswear delivered good returns from sports and own-brand casualwear. In womenswear, separates and dresses, women's shoes and own-brand womenswear made good headway, as did swimwear. In kidswear and toys, toys made progress and there were also healthy outcomes from babywear and boyswear.

Topics