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| Who were the 2015 Christmas winners and losers on the High Street? | |
| (about 17 hours later) | |
| Unseasonably warm winter weather, the inexorable rise of online shopping and consumer reluctance to pay full price has added up to a fairly dismal festive season for some retailers. | Unseasonably warm winter weather, the inexorable rise of online shopping and consumer reluctance to pay full price has added up to a fairly dismal festive season for some retailers. |
| We take a look at some of the winners and losers on the UK high street this Christmas. | We take a look at some of the winners and losers on the UK high street this Christmas. |
| WINNERS | WINNERS |
| John Lewis | John Lewis |
| Britain's biggest department store chain posted an impressive 5.1% rise in like-for-like sales in the six weeks to 2 January, with products in its technology category leading the field with a rise of 9.6%. Online sales were up more than a fifth and accounted for 40% of total sales. (Like-for-like sales, which measures performance at stores open for more than 12 months, is the measure preferred by analysts as it is the most accurate picture of a retailer's performance.) | Britain's biggest department store chain posted an impressive 5.1% rise in like-for-like sales in the six weeks to 2 January, with products in its technology category leading the field with a rise of 9.6%. Online sales were up more than a fifth and accounted for 40% of total sales. (Like-for-like sales, which measures performance at stores open for more than 12 months, is the measure preferred by analysts as it is the most accurate picture of a retailer's performance.) |
| Waitrose, its food retailing business, falls into the other category, however - see the Losers below. | Waitrose, its food retailing business, falls into the other category, however - see the Losers below. |
| Debenhams | Debenhams |
| The department store had a reasonably good Christmas, with a 3.7% rise in like-for-like sales for the nine weeks to 9 January. | The department store had a reasonably good Christmas, with a 3.7% rise in like-for-like sales for the nine weeks to 9 January. |
| The retailer said it made fewer discounts and kept tight control of clothing stock, such as winter coats, to reflect the unseasonably warm winter. | The retailer said it made fewer discounts and kept tight control of clothing stock, such as winter coats, to reflect the unseasonably warm winter. |
| House of Fraser | House of Fraser |
| Like-for-like sales at the department store rose by 5.3% in the six weeks to 2 January, which chief executive Nigel Oddy said underlined its strategy of improving both stores and its online offering, and developing its in-house brands. | Like-for-like sales at the department store rose by 5.3% in the six weeks to 2 January, which chief executive Nigel Oddy said underlined its strategy of improving both stores and its online offering, and developing its in-house brands. |
| Morrisons | Morrisons |
| Britain's fourth-biggest supermarket reported better-than-expected sales, with like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, up 0.2% in the nine weeks to 3 January. | Britain's fourth-biggest supermarket reported better-than-expected sales, with like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, up 0.2% in the nine weeks to 3 January. |
| Analysts had expected a decline of as much as 3%, suggesting that its revival strategy is paying off. | Analysts had expected a decline of as much as 3%, suggesting that its revival strategy is paying off. |
| LOSERS | LOSERS |
| Marks & Spencer | Marks & Spencer |
| Record food sales in the run-up to Christmas was not enough to save the high street stalwart, with like-for-likes falling 2.5% in the 13 weeks to 28 December. | Record food sales in the run-up to Christmas was not enough to save the high street stalwart, with like-for-likes falling 2.5% in the 13 weeks to 28 December. |
| Food was up 0.4% for the period, but general merchandise - which includes its clothing - sank by 5.8%. | Food was up 0.4% for the period, but general merchandise - which includes its clothing - sank by 5.8%. |
| Neil Saunders from retail consultants Conlumino commented: "It is timid and it is wedded to this kind of 'we have to be cheap, we have to be premium, we have to be all things to all people. Of course the result is it ends up being not very much to anybody." | Neil Saunders from retail consultants Conlumino commented: "It is timid and it is wedded to this kind of 'we have to be cheap, we have to be premium, we have to be all things to all people. Of course the result is it ends up being not very much to anybody." |
| The dismal results coincided with the departure of chief executive Marc Bolland after six years of trying to turn around the troubled retailer. | The dismal results coincided with the departure of chief executive Marc Bolland after six years of trying to turn around the troubled retailer. |
| Next | Next |
| The clothing retailer blamed the warm autumn and winter weather for its "disappointing" performance, with sales at its retail stores falling 0.5% between 26 October and 24 December. | The clothing retailer blamed the warm autumn and winter weather for its "disappointing" performance, with sales at its retail stores falling 0.5% between 26 October and 24 December. |
| However, they were up 2% at the Directory arm, which includes online, meaning that overall sales rose by 0.4% for the period. | However, they were up 2% at the Directory arm, which includes online, meaning that overall sales rose by 0.4% for the period. |
| Sports Direct | Sports Direct |
| The retailer, owned by Mike Ashley, also blamed the weather for a "deterioration of trading conditions on the high street" in the run-up to Christmas, which it did not expect to change in the next few months. | The retailer, owned by Mike Ashley, also blamed the weather for a "deterioration of trading conditions on the high street" in the run-up to Christmas, which it did not expect to change in the next few months. |
| The company also issued a profit warning, which sent shares tumbling by almost 15% on 8 January. | The company also issued a profit warning, which sent shares tumbling by almost 15% on 8 January. |
| An investigation by the Guardian newspaper into conditions at Sports Direct's warehouse in Derbyshire has generated considerable negative publicity in recent weeks. | An investigation by the Guardian newspaper into conditions at Sports Direct's warehouse in Derbyshire has generated considerable negative publicity in recent weeks. |
| Jonathan Pritchard, an analyst at Peel Hunt, said that "some mud from press articles/documentaries may have stuck to the brand". | Jonathan Pritchard, an analyst at Peel Hunt, said that "some mud from press articles/documentaries may have stuck to the brand". |
| Waitrose | Waitrose |
| The supermarket that is part of the John Lewis Partnership had an unhappy festive season, with like-for-like sales falling by 1.4% in the six weeks to 2 January as intense competition in the grocery market hit hard. | The supermarket that is part of the John Lewis Partnership had an unhappy festive season, with like-for-like sales falling by 1.4% in the six weeks to 2 January as intense competition in the grocery market hit hard. |
| Sainsbury's | Sainsbury's |
| Sainsbury's reported a 0.4% fall in like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, in the three months to 9 January compared with the same period last year. | Sainsbury's reported a 0.4% fall in like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, in the three months to 9 January compared with the same period last year. |
| However, the figure was better than some analysts had expected and was an improvement on the decline for the previous two quarters. | However, the figure was better than some analysts had expected and was an improvement on the decline for the previous two quarters. |
| Himanshu Pal, a Kantar Worldpanel analyst, said the supermarket had done "quite well" over the Christmas period: "Sainsbury's is making the right moves in simplifying its pricing and strategy and reducing multi-buy offers." | Himanshu Pal, a Kantar Worldpanel analyst, said the supermarket had done "quite well" over the Christmas period: "Sainsbury's is making the right moves in simplifying its pricing and strategy and reducing multi-buy offers." |