Justin King cautious for 2013 after record breaking Christmas for Sainsbury's
Supermarket chain Sainsbury's chief executive is cautious going into the New Year despite his company claiming to record figures for Over the Christmas period.
The company reported a rise in like-for-like sales in the third quarter ending 5 Jan of 0.9 per cent excluding fuel sales, with total sales up by 3.3 per cent excluding fuel.
"The week before Christmas was our strongest trading week ever, with customer transactions exceeding 27 million. We saw a record breaking £16 million of sales in one hour between 12pm and 1pm on Sunday 23rd December and experienced our best ever Christmas Eve, at both our supermarket and convenience stores, with over £100 million of sales," said King in his trading statement.
He added that 22 billion Nectar points were redeemed during the Christmas period, worth over £110 million, and that clothing sales were up by 10 per cent on the Sam period in 2012.
"We also saw strong sales growth in small electricals, such as toasters and kettles, growing at over 24 per cent year-on-year, and cookware, growing at nearly 15 per cent year-on-year," he added of non-food items.
Despite the record figures, King sounded a note of caution going into the new year, citing a continued "challenge economic backdrop" which is likely to see households look to balance budgets following the Christmas period and for spend to drop during the first few months ad a result.
"By continuing to help our customers to Live Well for Less through our ongoing commitment to great food, Brand Match, competitive pricing and targeted promotions via Nectar and coupon-at-till we are positioned to perform well over the next quarter," he concluded.
According to a report by Kantar Worldgroup, Sainsbury's is the only one of the 'Big Four' supermarkets to see an increase in sales, following Morrisons sales decline announced on Monday. Tesco is set to reveal its latest figures tomorrow (Thursday 10 January.) Meanwhile other chains such as Aldi and Lidl have gained ground the report has claimed.