The latest weekly John Lewis sales figures show it was just too hot for shopping. Sales in the week to May 30th fell by 8.2 per cent for the high street retailer.
As the company reported on Friday:
Exceptionally warm weather impacts on weekend footfall
Following on from such a strong run of sales during the first three weeks of May, it was frustrating but inevitable that the very warm weather would impact our performance last week. Despite good midweek sales, all branches reported the effect of the sunshine on Friday and Saturday, with reduced footfall making sales harder to come by.
Back in February, John Lewis found cold snowy weather just as bad for sales. As Reuters reported at the time:
LONDON, Feb 13 (Reuters) – John Lewis showed on Friday the extent of the damage wrought by recent heavy snowfall on British retailers, reporting a 17.1 percent drop in weekly sales at its department stores compared with the same time last year. The employee-owned group, viewed as a barometer of British retail spending, said stores in the south of the country were most affected by the heaviest snowfall for 20 years, with sales in Milton Keynes plunging 39.4 percent in the week ended Feb. 7.
Which leads us to conclude the sort of overcast, groggy weather we’re seeing in London this Friday is probably perfect for shopping – not too hot, not too cold, just right.
Related links:
Beware the haberdashery comeback - FT Alphaville
Shadow over John Lewis sales despite summer lift – This is London