Promising UK Christmas sales continue as Fortnum & Mason release record trading results for the period.
In the five weeks to January 1 the heritage department store posted a 16 per cent rise in like-for-like sales, encouraged by an online boost of 22 per cent which contributed over a third of its total sales.
Despite bumper growth in its online marketplace, which dispatched items to 121 countries in the period, the retailer‘s bricks-and-mortar stores in St Pancras, Heathrow Terminal 5 and its flagship in Piccadilly also saw like-for-like sales growth, with the latter seeing a 10 per cent rise in footfall.
Luxury purchases, including the retailer‘s iconic hampers, were also up by nearly a fifth.
These results follow a staggering period of growth for the retailer: in December it achieved its third consecutive year of record growth.
READ MORE: Fortnum & Mason records third year of sales and profits increase
“At the end of a year of great financial uncertainty and upheaval, these are very encouraging results,” chief executive Ewan Venters said.
“Our excellent Christmas performance is a reflection on the improvements we have made in our offering across online and our range of stores, and is testament to the enduring appeal of great products and impeccable service.
“At a challenging time for all retailers, we have shown that a quality experience is still highly attractive to customers around the world.”
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