The first week of the Easter break, good weather and the opening of a new shop in York combined to deliver a strong week's trading for John Lewis, with increases in all areas delivering a 13% gain on last year.

All directorates saw double-digit growth on the year. Home, up 13.2%, saw a good build in trade towards Easter, reflective of the different fall of the Easter weekend compared to last year. John Lewis also saw a 60% gain in Outdoor Living. Core home sales were also strong, partially supported by the retailer's new interest-free credit offer, with a record week in the half for Beds, helping Furniture return 15.7%. Lighting, up 15%, and Textiles, up 8.9%, also traded well.

The shops benefited from school holiday trade, with Newbury, Tamworth and High Wycombe taking the top spots, and sales at the new York store were ahead of expectations.

Online continued its strong run, up 35.8% versus last year, underpinned by very solid traffic and conversion.