John Lewis gets Christmas going ...122 days early
IT IS exactly four months until Christmas, but it seems the nation is already yearning for Yuletide.
So much so that John Lewis is opening its online Christmas shop ten days earlier than last year amid a surge in searches for festive products.
It seems the increased amount of time Britons have spent at home during the pandemic has led to families beginning to dream about December 25.
A John Lewis spokesman said: ‘Customer searches on the website for Christmas products are up by 370 per cent on this time last year.
‘This is the earliest we have ever launched our online Christmas
‘Planning for it earlier than ever’
shop and ten days earlier than last year.
‘The most searched for products in order of popularity are: Christmas trees, baubles, cards, lights and wrapping paper.’
The company said web searches for Christmas on the website of sister brand Waitrose over July and August were up 42 per cent on last year, despite there still being 122 days to go.
Searches for Christmas puddings were up 75 per cent, with mince pie searches up 110 per cent and mincemeat by almost 400 per cent.
Festive products buyer at John Lewis, Jason Billings-Cray, said: ‘Christmas always provides a reason for celebration and a welcome break.
‘Understandably it looks as if people are looking forward to and planning for it earlier than ever this year.
‘Christmas celebrations mostly take place in our homes and we have seen how the lockdown has made people think more about their homes, so perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that people are already thinking about how they will decorate them.’
This year, John Lewis’s festive decorations are inspired by seven different art movements ranging from Art Nouveau to Pop art and Renaissance.
Festive products will be offered in the company’s stores from September 25.