Online retailer M and M Direct enjoyed strong Christmas trade, with sales growth of 29 per cent in the nine weeks to December 30.

Internet sales rose 51 per cent for the period, with more than 1.5 million items from 435,000 orders shipped to customers in November and December.

M and M Direct chief executive Steve Robinson said: “The business did fantastically well over the Christmas period, driven both by customers seeking out great value products and its continued transformation from a mail order to an e-commerce business.”

Robinson, the former head of Tesco Direct, joined the e-tailer last October.