RETAILER John Lewis saw sales jump by 7% in the week to October 15.
The John Lewis Partnership said the best year-on-year performances came from stores in Newcastle, Trafford and High Wycombe while online sales were up by 36% on last year.
Home products saw a rise in sales with strong results for some “big ticket” items.
Fashion reported a 5% improvement with children’s wear rising by 11%.
Many customers were starting to feel festive with sales of Christmas gift ranges already selling well.
Supermarket arm Waitrose increased sales by 11.7% over the week.