John Lewis sales jumped 3.7% to £89.1m in the last week of Clearance, driven by bumper audio sales.

John Lewis sales were driven by Clearance

John Lewis

Electricals and home technology was John Lewis’s strongest category

Audio and smart home product sales surged 28.4% in the week to January 14, which the retailer said was largely down to the popularity of headphones.

This contributed to a 6.9% sales rise across electricals and home technology, which was the department store’s strongest category.

Sales in home were up 3.8%, driven by Clearance, while fashion sales dipped 0.1%.

Cold weather and health kicks drive Waitrose sales

Sales, excluding fuel, rose 2.7% to £122.5m at Waitrose over the week. The cold weather influenced shopping patterns at the grocer and led to a spike in hot drinks, ready meals and soups.

Waitrose said the January health kick was in full swing, with lots of fresh produce and fish being bought – including 9% more salads, 20% more avocados and a strong demand for its ‘Fish Friday’ promotion.

Despite the ‘Dry January’ movement, Waitrose reported a 5% rise in wine sales over the week, although it did say many customers were choosing low-alcohol and alcohol-free wines.

Customers were also snapping up Waitrose’s half-price offers to stock up cupboards, with particular demand for cleaning and laundry products to freshen up homes at the start of the year.