Department store chain reports 15.8% rise in sales over the festive period.
John Lewis has enjoyed its best-ever Christmas, with total sales for the five weeks to January, soaring 15.8%, compared with last year. Like-for-like (lfl) sales were also up 12.7%.

Home experienced a 19.6% boost in sales, while electricals and home technology increased by 11.4%. Compared with two years ago, total sales were up 16.4% and lfl sales were up 10.4%.

John Lewis managing director Andy Street commented: "We have seen excellent sales during Christmas and clearance. Customers have responded extremely well to our offer and are clearly motivated by inspiring products, great value and exceptional service. The five-week period has seen a number of records broken. Sales surpassed the £100m milestone on four separate weeks (the most recent being the week ending January 2, 2010), and we beat our previous biggest ever week from 2007 in early December."

He added: "As the year progresses, we expect to see a long, slow recovery, with the retailers who continue to focus on giving customers what they want prospering."