Ocado sales up 52% in third quarter
Online grocer Ocado saw its retail revenue climb by 52% to £587.3 million in its third quarter.
In the 13 weeks to 30 August, the retailer also benefited from a 9.6% uplift in average weekly orders to 345,000.
In a trading statement, Ocado said retail sales grew faster than in its second quarter due to demand remaining high following the easing of the Covid-19 lockdown compared to a seasonally softer period in the third quarter of 2019.
The retailer also said customers have responded well to this month’s switchover from Waitrose to M&S products with demand for the new range driving an increase in the number of products in customers’ baskets. In addition to 4,400 food products, the M&S range on Ocado also includes around 700 home and lifestyle lines.
Melanie Smith, Ocado Retail’s chief executive, said: “These are transformational times for Ocado Retail with M&S products now exclusively available online at Ocado.com. The successful switchover means that M&S products are available to buy in a weekly shop side by side with branded products for the first time. As a result, we can now offer customers more choice and better value than ever before, wider ranges than any traditional retailer, and thousands of products that are only available online through Ocado.com.”
