Sales at Waitrose have surged by 9.2 per cent (exc petrol) year-on-year as a popular Valentines Day meal deal and hot food sales encouraged people to stay indoors to avoid wet and windy weather.
Ready meals at the grocer, which include Cumberland pie and Chicken & Prawn Jambalaya, rose 26 per cent for the week while pie sales surged 27 per cent.
Mark Williamson, Commercial Director, Waitrose said: “We also saw our sales of sausages increase by 16 per cent as people looked for a warming meal in the poor winter weather.”
He said customers have also been seeking quick and easy meals to allow maximum time to watch the Winter Olympics in Sochi. The grocer had seen a 13 per cent surge in demand for beauty products as consumers looked for a “pick-me-up” in the wet and windy weather.
“Sales of our range increased by 13 per cent for the week, with a 21 per cent increase in sales of men‘s toiletries and a 14 per cent increase in sales of bath and shower products,” he added.
Waitrose has enjoyed a healthy sales surge in 2013 and made the top 10 YouGov brand index for the first time but remained behind fourth placed rival Aldi and sixth placed Marks and Spencer.
