Superdrug, the UK's second-largest health and beauty retailer with 66 stores in Scotland, has reported a surge in Christmas sales driven by the gifting of its lower-cost own-brand products.

The group said investment in "high performance products at an affordable price" was a significant driver of growth as consumers continued to battle the cost-of-living crisis during the festive season. There was also a surge in online app sales with 127,000 new registrations in the final quarter of last year for Superdrug's Health & Beautycard, which offers additional discounts.

In the peak trading weeks leading up to Christmas Superdrug sold three own-brand gift sets every second and three fragrance sets every minute, with Ariana Grande, Versace Eros Flame and CK Euphoria in particular demand. Oral care was also popular with the Superdrug ProCare Water Flosser, which landed on shelves in the third quarter, selling more than three times the number of units that its branded counterpart sold for the entire year.

Chief executive Pater Macnab said continued expansion of the store estate, which now numbers more than 780 shops across the UK and Ireland, and the rise in digital sales has pushed Superdrug to its highest share of the mass cosmetics market in a decade. It now accounts for 40% of the UK market, with its Studio London eight piece brush set the top selling product across its own-brand range.

"We are exceptionally pleased to be reporting strong Christmas results and appreciate our customers' continued support," Mr Macnab said.

"We understand the pressures customers are currently facing and are committed to supporting them and offering the very best in accessible health and beauty. The strong sales growth in own-brand really demonstrates that customers are seeking quality products from a brand that they can trust, at an affordable price."

READ MORE: Scottish retailers report 'little Christmas cheer'

During the four weeks to December 30 total sales at Superdrug were up by 9.2%, while like-for-like sales were 7.1% higher.

Sales of own-brand products were up 10% on the same period a year earlier. The retailer’s cosmetics range, Studio London, is Superdrug's fastest-growing and biggest own-brand range and contributed to 20% year-on-year growth in the cosmetics category and 9.1% volume growth in December.

The 74% year-on-year increase in new registrations for the Health & Beautycard during the final quarter took total membership to 18.1 million.

Established in London in 1964, Superdrug is owned by international health and beauty retailer AS Watson, which in turn is part of the Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings. AS Watson also owns the Savers and Perfume Shop retail chains in the UK.