RETAILER John Lewis has seen sales prosper as shoppers prepare themselves and their homes for the festive season.
According to its Christmas Barometer, last week its total sales reached £108.8 million, up by 7.2 per cent from last year and by 13.7 per cent from the previous week.
It also marked the first time this year that its sales exceeded the £100 million barrier, as well as equalling its 2013 record for the earliest week to have done so, and online sales were up by 15 per cent year on year.
Isabella Miller, head of branch at the store in Glasgow's Buchanan Galleries, said Christmas shopping is well and truly under way, with a noticeable, immediate uplift from the chain's advertising campaign featuring penguin Monty.
She said the store's sales were last week up by 1.7 per cent from the year-ago period, and by 24.6 per cent from the previous week.
She said it is "very much about preparing for Christmas," making sure festive guests feel at home. The store's sales of bed linen were up last week by 32 per cent, lighting by 11.5 per cent and TV sets by 10 per cent.
The company's two other stores in Scotland reported similar trends, with Edinburgh seeing growth of 16.8 per cent in bedlinen sales and 13.7 per cent in lighting, while Aberdeen reported a 1.2 per cent increase in bedlinen sales and 4.6 per cent in ceiling lighting.
Planning for additional guests over the festive period was a trend observed across John Lewis' stores, with sales of guest beds up by 50 per cent.
Simon Russell, director of retail operations development at the company, said customers are giving their homes "pre-Christmas makeovers with impressive results".
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