Another week, another record for John Lewis’s sales

The department store operator said yesterday that sales rose to £133.1 million in the week to 17 December, the highest weekly total in the company’s history, and outstripping the record haul of just the previous week – of £123.5m.

The 10.6 per cent year-on-year rise in sales was a gross number, inclusive of VAT and the contribution from additional selling space and new stores.

Analysts estimate that, excluding VAT and new space, the sales rise was closer to 4 per cent.

The employee-owned company, which also runs 268 Waitrose supermarkets, said electronics, toys and home accessories as well as furnishings and Christmas decorations sold well during the week. Kindles and iPads were among the best-selling gadgets.

Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, said: “It is without doubt a tough time for many families at this time of year. The fact that we have achieved another record week speaks volumes for John Lewis customers understanding that we will always honour our pledge to be ‘never knowingly undersold’.”

The pick-up in sales at John Lewis, whose latest figures cover its 29 department stores but exclude Waitrose, contrasts with an otherwise dismal scene on the British high street.

With consumers’ disposable income being squeezed by rising prices, muted wages growth and government austerity measures, confidence is low and UK retailers, nervous about spending in the key Christmas trading period, are discounting heavily.

Economists at the Centre for Economics and Business Research last night warned that retailers were in for an “austerity Christmas”, with December sales volumes set to be down 1.7 per cent compared with the month before.

Year-on-year, December volumes are likely to be 0.3 per cent lower despite more favourable weather this year.