Online sales slow at high-street giant Next

HIGH-STREET fashion chain Next said sales continue to grow although there has been a dip in online shopping as customers returned to stores.

Total full price sales in the 13 weeks to the end of April were up 21.3 per cent on the same period a year ago, although online sales fell by 11%.

The reason for the fall in online sales was that last year, due to lockdown measures in place, physical stores were shut.

Conversely, store sales jumped 285% on the same period a year ago as a result, Next said.

However, when compared on a three-year basis – the last period before Covid hit – sales in stores remain down by 8%.

Bosses said the high street bellwether remains in good shape for the rest of the year and did not downgrade forecasts as a result of further inflationary pressures.

Chief executive Lord Simon Wolfson said in March that the company is expecting to increase prices by an average of 3.7% over the half-year to July.

He said pricing is expected to rise by an average of 8% in the following six-month period, with fashion set for a 6.5% increase.

But on Thursday there were no further suggestions that prices would rise any higher.

The company previously said it would take an £85 million hit in sales by shutting its operations in Russia and Ukraine, knocking profits by £18m for the year.

Russ Mould at AJ Bell, said sales at Next “have weakened versus a year ago, but if you compare the figures to pre-pandemic they are still considerably ahead.”