UK retail sales slowed in February as like-for-likes edged up 0.1%, according to the BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor.

Food – down

Grocers’ hopes that January sales had fallen due only to the impact of ‘dry January’ will be disappointed as food and drinks sales declined for the second consecutive month in February. Deflation and competition among supermarkets drove prices down while a demand for organic food and ready meals grew.

Clothing – up

The end of January sales and unpredictable weather impacted purchases of retailers’ spring and summer ranges, and like-for-likes sales fell in February. Online purchases drove total sales up, while kidswear had the best performance overall.

Footwear – down

Footwear was the worst-performing sales category in February as only menswear sales grew, due to clearance purchases and continued sales of winter ranges. Covered shoes and ankle boots also performed well, but new season’s ranges failed to inspire purchases.

Health and beauty – up

Valentine’s Day drove health and beauty purchases in February, with fragrances and miniature travel products selling particularly well. Retailers that offered themed Valentine’s Day offers and products performed well, while those that didn’t reported lower footfall and conversion rates.

Furniture – up

Big-ticket purchases continued to push sales growth overall as furniture recorded the highest growth of all product categories for the second consecutive month.

Home accessories – up

The early arrival of Mother’s Day drove gifting purchases in this sector, which achieved the second-highest growth of all categories in the month overall.

House textiles – up

House textiles like-for-like sales fell in February after a strong performance over the previous two months, making it the worst-performing of the home categories.

Toys and baby equipment – up

Like-for-likes and total sales in this category both reported uplifts, but growth was subdued in comparison with last year, when purchases of Frozen merchandise were lifting sales.

Household appliances – up

As in the furniture category, big-ticket purchases drove sales in household appliances, with large items driving growth, while purchases of smaller products declined.

Jewellery and watches – up

As with health and beauty, jewellery retailers cashed in on Valentine’s Day, with the category posting the third-highest sales growth in February overall.

Other non-food – up

Electricals and electronics

Mobile phones continued to drive growth in this category alongside a surge in sales of streaming devices.

Leisure goods: gaming, books, CDs and DVDs

Physical books continued their revival in February, reporting the strongest growth in the category overall.

DIY and gardening

This sector continued a solid performance as increased purchases of gardening tools drove growth.

Department stores

Subdued sales in clothing and footwear, compounded by unseasonable weather, meant department stores had a slow month as new ranges failed to generate sales and footfall.