Following today’s release of The Very Group’s figures for the seven weeks ending 22nd December 2023; Tash Van Boxel, Retail Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers her view: “In a year that has seen stagnant online non-food sales, The Very group has ended the year on a positive note, with the online pureplay achieving 2.1% growth for the seven weeks to 22 December 2023. Sales during this period were aided by its new Christmas campaign, ‘Let’s make it sparkle’, which highlighted offers and gifting options ahead of the festive period, enticing new and returning shoppers to its platform. Given the strong reception to The Very Group’s latest campaign, it must continue to build on this momentum, focusing on new marketing campaigns throughout 2024. This will enable the online pureplay to stay at the fore for consumers and thus retain its popularity outside of the golden quarter.
“Gifting categories were the driving force behind Very UK’s performance, its strongest, toys, gifts and beauty, rose by 8.8% in the period, with notable volume growth in perfumes. This was driven by consumers indulging themselves over the promotional period and buying fragrances as gifts for loved ones. Continued investment in this category will remain a priority, ensuring Very continues to be a go-to destination for gifts and beauty purchases during the festive period and beyond. Electricals also experienced significant growth, driven by the popularity of games consoles, with sharper price drops in newest generation consoles due to fast-approaching mid-generation updates. To further boost electrical sales, Very must continue to highlight Very Pay finance options, enticing shoppers to invest in these higher-ticket items.
“Home and fashion & sports weighed down Very UK’s performance, declining 2.9% and 3.9% respectively. Very has struggled to compete in these categories, with the likes of Next seeing 9.1% growth in its online sales in the nine weeks ending 30 December 2023. The retailer must emphasise partywear and winter essentials next year, highlighting its existing ranges and adding new brands to its offer, as this will enable the pureplay to better compete with clothing & footwear specialists in the lead-up to festive events.”
