The ‘Hare and Bear‘ effect appears to be paying off after Britain‘s biggest department store John Lewis posted another record breaking sales week.

The firm said online sales rose 22 per cent and took a third of overall trade for three weeks in a row.

There was a spike in online orders between 9 – 10pm on Cyber Monday as customers spent five times more than usual. Customers flocked to buy the iPad Air which was the best selling gift for the fifth consecutive week.

David Barford, director of selling, praised John Lewis‘ distribution operation and IT support which he said made the online sales record possible.

“It‘s clear that both gift buying for others and treats for themselves are top of mind for our customers,” he said.

Total sales across John Lewis reached £144.5m, up 1.8 per cent on last year and a surge of 17 per cent compared with two years ago.

Mobile and tablet users made up just over 50 per cent of traffic to the site on Sunday.