Electricals and online shopping were the star performers for John Lewis in the week to December 4.


Snowstorms and icy weather cooled performances at the store group which produced a modest 1.3 per cent upturn in total sales but even this did not stop it from crossing the £100m barrier.


The fact that consumers did not stop shopping was shown in online sales at johnlewis.com soared by 47 per cent, which, said head of multi channel Simon Russell, “blasted all previous records”. He added: “It was a very busy week for click and collect, once again the fastest growing offer.”


For electricals it turned out to be the best week ever outside of clearance sales with business up 10.7 per cent on a year ago.


“Great prices and our extended free warranties helped a stunning week for white goods,” Mr Russell said. “Heating had a record week while, for gift buying, MP3 players, tablet PCs and large-screen televisions were strongest.”