Marks & Spencer has been crowned a Christmas winner by yet another group of industry experts.
In the latest boost ahead of the High Street stalwart’s festive trading update tomorrow, research group NIQ said food sales rose 12.1 per cent in the 12 weeks to the end of December.
Almost 29 per cent of households shopped at M&S last month, up from 27 per cent in the same period a year earlier, equating to 500,000 new customers, the report said.
The only grocer to perform better was Lidl with NIQ estimating its sales rose 15.3 per cent over the 12-week period.
Aldi’s sales rose 11.4 per cent, the report showed.
Lauded: Under the guidance of chairman and retail veteran Archie Norman, M&S chief exec Stuart Machin (pictured) has continued a turnaround programme at the historic chain
Separate figures from data firm Kantar revealed in the Mail on Sunday last weekend put M&S on the top of the pile with food sales up 14.2 per cent in the four weeks to Christmas Eve.
That was slightly more than the 14.1 per cent rise seen at Aldi and Lidl.
With demand for M&S clothing also expected to have been strong over Christmas, investors are hoping for a bumper update tomorrow.
‘Their core shoppers are far more insulated from the cost-of-living crisis, helping them put the best foot forward in festive sales,’ said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown.
Under the guidance of chairman and retail veteran Archie Norman, chief executive Stuart Machin has continued a turnaround programme at the historic chain.
M&S has rid its clothes of their dowdy image, driven growth in both stores and online, and slashed £400million of costs over five years.
Investors have lauded the strategy and shares have more than doubled in value since the start of last year, rising 130 per cent.
The rally saw it return to the FTSE 100 in September after a painful four year absence from the blue-chip index.
Although its clothing ranges were once widely mocked for missing the mark, M&S cemented its return to fashion last year when it revealed actress Sienna Miller as the face of its autumn collection.
Tesco and Sainsbury’s also had stellar Christmases, with sales up 7.4 per cent and 8.7 per cent respectively.
Sainsbury’s will publish its official festive figures today and Tesco alongside M&S tomorrow.
But private-equity owned Asda and Morrisons continued to lag behind, each clocking growth of 3.2 per cent, according to NIQ.
Total supermarket sales hit £4.8billion during the week ending December 23, marking the biggest week on record.
