DIYWEEK.net

Department store chain exceeds £100m milestone in its first week of clearance.
John Lewis has posted a 29% sales increase for the week ending January 2, compared with the same period last year. It is also the first time the retailer has ever passed the £100m milestone in its first week of clearance.

Its sale kicked off with a record Sunday in each of its 29 branches, with the six-hour trading window providing John Lewis with its highest-ever hourly striking rate. According to the retailer, this figure was then surpassed by Monday's trading, with the two days combined 25% up on the first two days of clearance a year ago.

Home was up 27% for the week, while electricals and home technology was up 23%, with a record number of white goods sold during the week. Online sales were also impressive, with John Lewis Direct posting a 37.1% increase on last year.

There seems to be no stopping John Lewis, which has already reported its best-ever Christmas this year, with sales up 15.8% on 2008 and record-breaking sales of £110m in the first week of December.