Staff at John Lewis, including those at the new Southampton flagship store in WestQuay, are celebrating after the company announced record pre-Christmas trading figures.
John Lewis, which has 25 outlets around the country, said sales for December were up by 6.6 per cent on the same period last year when business had been buoyed by pre-millennium euphoria.
It is a boost for the group's 40,000 staff, known as partners, who own a stake in the business and receive an annual performance-linked bonus, usually around 15 per cent of their salary.
Company spokesman Gareth Thomas said: "We had expected a dip as we entered the final week before Christmas but, with a very successful couple of days to round off that week, sales in the week to December 23 were over £71 million."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article