Sales of Christmas pudding and mince pies doubled at Waitrose

Sales hit �100.7m ($188m) - up almost 50% on a year ago - amid strong trade and an "outstanding set of figures" from new stores bought from Morrisons.

But, Waitrose - part of the John Lewis Partnership - said a quieter week followed, with sales down 1.9% at �49.8m on the same period a year ago.

Overall, sales in the last 22 weeks of the year were up 17.1% on 2003.

Late surge

"Waitrose has really delivered in the face of a great surge," managing director Steven Esom said.

"We have managed to meet demand, getting food to the right place, at the right time, in the right quantity. Our shelves have been fully stocked, ensuring customers have been able to find exactly what they wanted."

The update from John Lewis also said that the department store arm of the partnership also benefited from a "last-minute surge".