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The Very Group has reported “resilient” Christmas and Black Friday trading, as UK retail sales rose 1.9% year-on-year in the six weeks to 27 December 2025.
According to the online department store, its performance was driven by stronger demand in higher margin categories including home, toys and beauty.
Home sales increased 7.9% year-on-year during the period, while toys and beauty rose 6.4%. Best-selling products included the Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5 and Ninja Home Barista Bundle by sales value, with perfumes, beauty gift sets and the Meta Quest 3S among the top sellers by volume.
Across the wider group, which also includes Littlewoods and Very Ireland, retail sales fell 0.4% year-on-year over the six-week period.
The retailer said Black Friday was its best trading day since the Covid-19 pandemic, supported by high order volumes and strong operational performance at its Skygate fulfilment centre in the East Midlands.
Operationally, the group processed 209,000 items at Skygate on 28 November, the busiest day of the peak period, and handled around 1.3 million items during Black Friday week, exceeding the previous year’s busiest week.
The fastest order during the period was processed and despatched within 15 minutes, while the group said it maintained next-day delivery throughout peak trading, with a 7pm cut-off on 23 December for pre-Christmas delivery.
Robbie Feather, group chief executive of the Very Group, said: “Despite a challenging and competitive market, we’re delighted to see topline growth with Very UK sales increasing 1.9%, which includes a strong performance across home, toys and beauty.
“This resilient performance, including our best trading day since Covid, has been made possible thanks to the ongoing commitment and hard work of colleagues from across the business.”
Feather added that the group entered 2026 with a focus on its strategic priorities, including innovation and the use of technology and data to improve its customer offering, adding that it was well placed to manage ongoing market uncertainty.
