Why Fortnum & Mason will shut for Adele — but not the Royals

LUXURY department store Fortnum & Mason shrugged off fears for the High Street to post record sales growth.

Fortnum, which has been open for 310 years, said the 14pc increase in sales to £113m has been boosted by demand from customers living in Britain. Profits jumped 23pc to £7.6m in the year to the end of July, while its online sales grew by 17pc.

The shop prides itself on its British produce and reported that 82pc of its turnover came from goods made in the UK.

Chief executive Ewan Venters said: ‘We are now anticipating a busy and successful Christmas period.’

Venters also revealed that pop star Adele ( pictured) had asked if she could do her shopping there 30 minutes before opening time. ‘Members of the Royal family come in and out all the time without anyone noticing,’ he said, ‘but we allowed Adele to come in with her friends when the shop was closed, because it would have been utter chaos with her fans following her round.’