UK's John Lewis enjoys 4.8 pct Christmas sales rise

LONDON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Sales at Britain's biggest department store group John Lewis rose nearly 5 percent in the five weeks to Dec. 27, driven by the "Black Friday" frenzy at the start of the period and by last-minute Christmas gift-buying at the end.

While sales in the Black Friday discount event were led by electricals and home technology, the most popular gifts for Christmas included fitness trackers, coffee machines and kitchen appliances, the employee-owned group said on Monday.

Sales in the five-week period hit 777 million pounds ($1.2 billion), up 4.8 percent on a like-for-like basis on a year before, driven by a 19 percent jump in online sales.

The jump in online demand meant some 36 percent of all group sales were conducted via the johnlewis.com website during the Christmas period, with more than half of those being collected in shops via the "Click & Collect" delivery option.

The company said the standout event had been the success of its Black Friday promotions, which resulted in record sales during that week at the end of November, and then a lull before trading picked up in the run in Christmas.

"This year confirmed the new shape of trade for Christmas, with an early peak at the end of November driven by Black Friday and last-minute gift buying," said Managing Director Andy Street.

The 150-year-old John Lewis outperformed many of its rivals during the economic downturn, due to its strong online offering, modern stores and more affluent customer base. The group is one of the first in the British sector to report on its performance in the weeks running up to Christmas, a key trading period.

Retailer Next said earlier this week it had enjoyed a solid rise in Christmas sales, especially online, without having to resort to the discounting seen on many shopping streets.

Updates are due next week from Marks & Spencer (Other OTC: MAKSF - news) and supermarket groups Tesco (Xetra: 852647 - news) and Sainsbury.

For the year ahead, many retailers are more optimistic on their prospects given rising incomes and higher employment.

The John Lewis numbers do not include results from the Waitrose supermarket chain which is part of the wider John Lewis Partnership. Waitrose on Jan. 2 reported a provisional 6.5 percent rise in sales excluding fuel in the two weeks to Dec. 27.

($1 = 0.6491 pounds) (Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by David Holmes)