Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
The Easter weekend drove strong sales across the Home category at John Lewis, delivering a record week to March 30 for Cooking and Dining, and driving sales up 11% against the like-for-like period.
The coldest March in 50 years continued to have a “dramatic effect” on the department store group’s sales pattern compared with the warmer weather last year.
However, John Lewis added that “varied assortment provided customers with choices to suit every eventuality”, leading to a strong performance with sales up 23.1% on last year to £76.72m.
Sales were also boosted by Easter footfall into branches. The ‘at home’ stores performed well, with the strongest results coming from Swindon (up 77.7% on last year), and Tamworth (up 79.3%). Online was up 14.6% as a result of a Price Match and Double Points promotion over the weekend on the Partnership card.
John Lewis Head of Merchandising, Central Operations, Susan Young said: “With the school holidays in full swing, and the Shop Spring campaign under way, we are confident of a good performance across the board.
“Although it’s still on the chilly side, we’ve begun to see a glimpse of sunshine, which should encourage customers to venture into our summer product and start thinking about spending more time outdoors. Stock and availability remains in a good position to support this footfall.”
