Retail giants Sainsbury's and House of Fraser buck the gloom with festive cheer

Published on Thursday 8 January 2009 20:59

TWO more major players in British retail have announced positive results from pre-Christmas trading.

Sainsbury's yesterday said it had enjoyed its best-ever festive period, with sales up 4.8 per cent in the 13 weeks to 3 January.

House of Fraser described trading as "robust" after announcing a 4.5 per cent increase in sales over the past five weeks.

This followed better-than-expected returns from Debenhams and Next.

But Signet, the parent company of the jewellery chains H Samuel, Ernest Jones and Leslie Davis, said sales had plunged across its 561 UK stores, dropping 10.9 per cent in the nine weeks to 3 January.

Sainsbury's, the first of the "big four" UK grocers to report on festive trading, said it had 22.6 million customers in the final week before Christmas, and its busiest-ever trading day on 23 December.

House of Fraser, which launched half-price offers in the run-up to Christmas, said its marketing activity had been "more aggressive" as a result of tougher high-street conditions.

The firm, which has 62 storesin the UK and Ireland and employs 6,500 staff, is the latest to defy fears over a spending slump.

Don McCarthy, House of Fraser's chairman, said: "There is no doubt that the retail sector has experienced one of its toughest years to date. However, our performance over the Christmas period was positive and we are satisfied with the robustness of our business."