Woolworths Food was yet again the standout performer for the Cape Town-based retailer with sales growth of 10.9% for has remained the outstanding performer with sales growth of 10.9% for the 26 weeks to December 27.
It's fashion, beauty and homeware business struggles were exacerbated by Covid-19 pandemic with sales declining 11.2%.
Overall sales for the period increased by 5.3% compared to the same period in 2019, it said in a statement on Monday. Online sales grew by 158.5%, contributing 2.2% to sales, with the expansion of the click and collect offering and trial of an on-demand delivery service.
Commenting on its fashion business, the company said it "...continues to be affected by the constrained environment, a significant decrease in Black Friday spend across the sector, and the reduction in formalwear trade."
Woolworths Australian operations continue to underperform with sales at David Jones falling 8.8%, while Country Road sales declined by 5.2%.
"In Australia, while the 12-week lockdown in the State of Victoria negatively impacted sales for the half, the easing of Covid-19 restrictions, together with the extended JobKeeper relief, our successful Black Friday and Cyber Monday campaigns, and further growth in our online sales, contributed to an improved performance in the last six weeks of the reporting period."
