After a year characterised by administrations and corporate scandals, Christmas trading provided some welcome respite.

Most of the fashion retailers that have reported their results so far have either met excellent expectations – Ted, Joules et al – or surpassed subdued predictions – M&S comes to mind.

It’s worth remembering that we haven’t heard much from the middle market on their Christmas takings but there is plenty to learn from the slew of retailers who have reported.

The most obvious trend, of course, is that almost every fashion trading update so far has been positive – albeit against some pretty weak comparatives from an unseasonably warm 2015.

Etailers Asos and Boohoo also fared well over the festive season, matching their usual stellar quarterly performances throughout the past year.

Lifestyle champions

The lifestyle retailers – Ted Baker, Joules, Fat Face and, to a certain extent, SuperGroup and Jigsaw – have also continued their excellent years.

Many notched up double-digit like-for-likes during the festive season with highly distinctive product for their clearly defined customers.

Their well-publicised anti-discounting stance was another notable trend, both standing them in good stead with consumers and preserving margins.

Under Steve Rowe, M&S has joined the march against Black Friday, with its pricing strategy paying dividends.

It was one of three areas singled out – along with product and availability as contributing to positive trading.

Next

M&S’ good performance was the main surprise this Christmas – if you don’t count the subdued performance at Next last week.

Under Rowe, the retailer experienced its second positive quarter in two years – and its third in five and a half years.

But all this positive news means that Next’s faltering performance last week is now the exception, not the rule.

It seems premature to begin calling the retailer the new M&S but the last few quarters have seen it flounder as times get tough.

What Next and its more fortunate counterparts can agree on, however, is that 2017 is set to be incredibly tough for fashion retailers.

Lord Wolfson said last week,“we expect the cyclical slowdown in spending on clothing and footwear to continue into next year” while today John Lewis chairman Charlie Mayfield compared the currency headwinds due to hit retail this summer to “a dog that hasn’t really barked yet”.

Many fashion retailers are determined to keep prices down and instead pass costs onto their suppliers or absorb them into already tight margins.

The coming year may well be characterised by squeezed margins and faltering consumer confidence.

The Christmas cheer could soon be forgotten.