Although fewer people visited its high street outlets during the Christmas shopping period, John Lewis was able to report a 5.1 per cent rise in sales across its group of retail brands, thanks to the popularity of shopping online, according to the Guardian.

The stark difference between the 1.2 per cent dip in bricks and mortar sales over the past six weeks and the 21.4 per cent rise in e-commerce sales seen by the major chain is yet another indication of how important the web has become for companies looking to engage with consumers.

Interestingly, the post-Christmas sales period did see a return to growth for store visits, with a 16.2 per cent rise in sales, thanks to the price cuts and clearance offers created by John Lewis.

The retailer identified a trio of peaks in festive shopping activities, defined by Black Friday in late November, the days just prior to December 25th itself and the sales which begin almost as soon as Christmas Day had concluded.

Of these three, Black Friday remained the busiest for John Lewis, with an 18 per cent increase in sales. However supermarket chain, Waitrose, which is also part of the John Lewis group, saw a remarkable surge on the 23rd and 24th December, with last minute purchases influencing consumer shopping habits.

While millions of people spent billions of pounds via safe shopping online during Christmas Day and Boxing Day in 2015, the fact that high street stores still offer immediate access to products can mean that they are still the top choice for last minute gift buying. And with click and collect services continuing to emerge as a popular delivery option, the e-commerce and high street worlds are becoming more closely connected as time passes.