Sainsbury's has reported that like-for-like sales in the four
months to December grew 3.9%, boosted by online growth of 27%.
The company's good results were fuelled by online success, with
the retailer recording its biggest number of online orders ever in
the week before Christmas. Shoppers made 132,000 orders during the
week, contributing to a 27% growth rate in the third quarter of the
financial year. This came after a 30% rate of growth in the first
half of the current financial year.
Online transactions are still a relatively small percentage of
Sainsbury's total, with 22.6 million transactions taking place in
the run up to Christmas. But the company has said in the past it
sees
"
significant growth potential" in online business, and the
IT team has come through a few
technical hitches in the past.
In the first half of the 2009/10 financial year, it plans to
introduce non-food products onto its site.
Chief executive Justin King said Christmas 2008 was the
company's best ever. He said, "We have continued to develop the
Sainsbury's offer and demonstrated our ability to respond to
rapidly changing customer needs."