Fashion sales fall 13.3 percent as John Lewis weekly sales tumble

In what should be one of the busiest retail weeks of the year, John Lewis suffered a gross loss in sales, as the days following Black Friday failed to lure shoppers, who presumably stayed home during the wet weather.

For the week ending December 14, overall sales for the parent company of John Lewis and Waitrose declined 7.8 cent year-on-year, from 335.97 million pounds to 309.69 million pounds.

Fashion suffered, falling 13.3 percent

Despite strong sales on Black Friday, John Lewis saw a significant slump in fashion sales, which fell 13.3 percent, with the exception of its cashmere category, which saw an uplift of 6 percent, no doubt influenced by the spell of cold weather.

For the year-to-date, sales fell a marginal 0.7 per cent. Elsewhere the high street giant saw home sales down 6.3 per cent but experiences sales were up 173 per cent.

At Waitrose home and general merchandise sales dropped 12.5 percent.

Despite the slow week, John Lewis triumphed on Black Friday, However, hosting customer shopping events across 48 stores which saw strong demand from customers. Sales increased 17.2 per cent and footfall was up 16 per cent, compared to last year’s events.

Image: John Lewis media centre