Fashion boost helps John Lewis defy economic downturn.

Byline: BILL GLEESON

JOHN Lewis Partnership said department store sales rose 7.5% last week after an "excellent" showing for the group's fashion division.

The group, which opened its 27th store in Leicester this month, as well as the Liverpool and Cambridge stores earlier this year, reported total revenues of pounds 51.4m for the seven days to last Saturday.

Fashion sales were 20.6% higher and reflected a strong performance in back-to-school ranges, John Lewis said in its weekly trading update.

However, the Partnership's Waitrose supermarket business struggled to make headway in the week, with sales just 0.6% higher.

Last week, half-year results from John Lewis indicated that Waitrose had lost market share as shoppers looked for cheaper options in the economic downturn.

Waitrose's like-for-like sales were 2.5% ahead in the first half of the year, but this swung to a 1.1% fall in the six weeks since the end of July. Overall, Partnership profits slipped 27% to pounds 108m, with the group braced for a challenging rest of the year.

John Lewis said electricals and home technology boosted sales by 3.4%, while home sales were down 1.2%, an improvement on the recent trend.

Figures showed sales rose by 1.2% between July and August - beating City forecasts for a drop of 0.4%.

CAPTION(S):

Karen Elson models knitwear for John Lewis, where fashion sales were up