John Lewis boasts of 'fantastic' Easter week

Upmarket department store John Lewis has posted a 'fantastic' week of trading over Easter, boosted by poor weather conditions and demand for the newest edition of the iPad.

In the week leading up to the Easter weekend the company saw a 27.5% rise in sales to £66.7m compared to the same period a year ago.

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In the best performing division, namely electronics and home technology, sales soared 59% as buyers rushed out to get their hands of the iPad 3.

The home division saw sales climb 16%, while fashion was up 18%.

The best performing stores were Leicester, up by 42%, and Bluewater in Kent, up 38%.

The company's Waitrose sector also put in a strong week, up 4.5% compared to the week preceding Easter in 2011, boosted by a 50% rise in sales of its seasonal confectionary.

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