Talking Retail Grocery and product news for independent retailers
Sales to retailers by the Tesco-owned wholesaler were up 4.1% like-for-like in the 19 weeks to 6 January, when compared with the same period last year.
A Tesco statement said these sales were boosted by its Christmas campaign of deals on key products.
The period covered by the extended trading statement included the third quarter of Tesco’s financial year, up to 25 November, with the period of six weeks to the 6 January added in to give an idea of how Christmas trading compared with 2022.
One sector that continued to decline during the period covered was tobacco sales, which fell 4.2%, attributed to a further fall in the extent of smoking.
If tobacco sales are excluded, Booker’s like-for-like retail sales actually rose by 9.4%.
Sales were also helped by the addition of another 158 retailer partners to those who buy their supplies from Booker during the 19 weeks.
Booker also opened a 119,000sq ft distribution centre on the former Makro site in Fareham, Hampshire.
Tesco’s own convenience store brand, Tesco Express, also saw sales increase over Christmas, although not as much as at its larger stores.
Tesco’s large shops saw an increase of 6.8% at Christmas and 7.8% in the the third quarter, while Tesco Express had a 4.6% sales increase at Christmas and 4.5% in the third quarter overall.
