Selfridges sales rocked at Christmas

Upscale department store Selfridges has emerged as one of the big winners of the Christmas 2018 trading period with sales across its stores and online up 8% in the 24 days to Christmas.

The business said sales in the week leading up to Christmas were also up 8% while its flagship store on Oxford Street was up 10% in the 24 days to Christmas, according to The Times.

Selfridges, which ran a Selfridges Rocks music-themed Christmas campaign, has been investing heavily in its stores of late with Oxford Street receiving a £300m refurbishment to create what it said to be the world's largest accessories hall.

Many retailers are set to report their Christmas trading figures this week including mid-market department stores John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and Debenhams. John Lewis has already said that the immediate run-up to Christmas was strong and that its sale had got off to a good start, but some analysts are anticipating M&S and Debenhams will be down.

Bellwether retailer Next put in a better than expected performance with sales up 1.5%, which was buoyed by a strong online performance. However on the high street as a whole footfall was down in December, according to BDO.