Department store group John Lewis has seen sales grow 4.7 per cent year-on-year in the four days to the end of Wednesday December 14th, 2011 as shoppers prepare for Christmas.
While baking and cooking utensils are proving popular, with sales of sieves and pudding mix bowls up 24 per cent and 14 per cent on last year respectively, wine and drinks fridges have seen sales soar, rising 88 per cent annually as shoppers get in the festive mood.
Sales of 55 inch screens rose a staggering 200 per cent compared to the same week last year, while fashion has also had a positive week. Fake fur saw sales increase 67 per cent on last week as consumers fought to stave off the cold, with leopard print earmuffs sold at a rate of three pairs an hour.
Childrenswear had a strong week as the cold weather drove sales of boys‘ and girls‘ hats, gloves and scarves, with children‘s snowboots seeing sales soar 254 per cent week-on-week.
Sales at the retailer have grown during December, following disappointing figures throughout November due to unseasonably mild weather which affected footfall and saw sales remain flat just 4 weeks before Christmas.
Lesley Ballantyne, Director of Operational Development for John Lewis, said that these positive figures show that the festive season is now in full swing.
“Shoppers are thinking about Christmas comforts this week with only ten days to go until Christmas Day,” she commented.
“We are now gearing up for a last minute rush, particularly in lingerie and beauty, where many choose to buy their gifts in the final days before Christmas.”
As part of its ongoing strategy to enhance the in-store experience for tech-savvy shoppers, the group has today announced the launch of an iPhone app which will provide access to 200,000 John Lewis products in time for the festive rush.
The new app offers GPS, access to the johnlewis.com product catalogue and allows shoppers to scan the barcodes of products in-store to access additional information and videos from expert staff.
