Shoppers spent £150m in the West End over the weekend as they stocked up on festive goodies with two weekends to go before Christmas.

According to figures from New West End Company, the organisation that represents retailers in the West End, shopper numbers were up 16.5% on the equivalent weekend last year. This was driven by visitors from Spain, Italy and Portugal coming over on their holiday, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

Fortnum & Mason chief executive Ewan Venters said sales at the 300-year-old Piccadilly store jumped 13% against last year, delivering its biggest ever Saturday. “It was extraordinary. We could not have fitted a single extra person in the building,” he said.