Waitrose have released their pre-Christmas sales results, indicating that they are continuing to thrive in the tough supermarket sector.

Sales were up 10 percent in the week to 26th December, as well as 1.7 percent on the year to date. This follows on from last year, when the supermarket’s sales figures were up 29.3 percent for the same week, and 7.3 percent on the year before.

This accords with UK Investor Magazine’s survey that was carried out just before Christmas, with the aim of understanding consumers’ Christmas grocery shopping habits and drawing predictions as to how each supermarket will fare. Supermarkets are having a tough time at the moment, with each of the Big Four having to compete more than ever before with both independent food stores and discount chains such as Lidl and Audi.

Our survey indicated that quality was more important than price when it came to Christmas food shopping, with over 80 percent of people agreeing with the statement “good quality is more important than a low price when shopping for Christmas groceries.” Given Waitrose’s reputation for quality, their latest results tally well with our findings.

To read the rest of our survey results and predictions for the sector in 2016, follow the link here.