Boots website sees ‘biggest ever month of sales in November’
The company said footfall to its shops had also increased in the most recent quarter.
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Your support makes all the difference.The Boots app and website reported its best ever month in November as it was boosted by a strong Black Friday, the company has said.
The pharmacy chain said that visits to its shops had also increased during the three months to the end of November, up 7% on the same period a year earlier.
The biggest increases were for its flagship locations and travel sites, such as in train stations, the business said.
The company released little data about its Christmas trading, but hinted that it had been better than a year ago according to “early indications”.
Sales were up 9.8% in the quarter that ended on November 30, Boots said, as the company captured more market share for the 11th quarter in a row.
“These excellent results were in part driven by a strong Black Friday period, which saw boots.com achieve its biggest ever month of sales in November and its biggest ever day of sales on Black Friday,” the business said.
It singled out strong performances among its electrical beauty and skincare ranges, among others.
The company gave patients more than one million flu vaccinations and 90,000 Covid booster jabs.
Managing director Seb James said: “I am very encouraged by the way in which people are responding to the changes that we have made, especially in our digital and beauty businesses.
“It is really good to see that market share has grown for the 11th quarter in a row, showing that more customers are choosing Boots.
“This strong start to the year, together with a good Christmas, sets us up well for another good year and I would like to thank most sincerely all of my colleagues for their hard work and resilience over this vital trading period.”
The news came as parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance reported that it had narrowed its operating loss from 6.2 billion dollars (£4.9 billion) a year ago to 39 million dollars (£31 million) in the three months to the end of November this year.
Sales rose almost 10% to 36.7 billion dollars (£28.9 billion), the business reported on Thursday.
Speculation has mounted for months that the parent company might be looking to sell Boots to fund its expansion into new areas in the US. There was no obvious hint of that in Thursday’s results.