Ocado saw record sales over the festive period, with sales jumping 15 per cent over the five days before Christmas.

The online food retailer recorded revenue of £549.4 million in the 13 weeks to 27 November, a rise of 0.3 per cent compared to the same quarter the previous year.

Yet the average basket value fell 1.3 per cent to £117 as the average cost per item rose by around seven per cent.

Ocado has held its earnings guidance for the 2022 financial year, but it expects earnings to fall in 2023 due to the cost-of-living crisis.

The number of active shoppers at Ocado grew around 13 per cent to 940,000, with the company’s mature customer base having grown in the previous quarter.

Commenting on the news Hannah Gibson, Ocado Retail’s chief executive, said: “We now have close to 1 million active customers, our largest ever customer base and we see huge potential to convert those who have now trialled online shopping elsewhere to become Ocado customers.”

She added: “While the current market environment is challenging for everyone, I am very excited in the future for Ocado Retail.”

The announcement comes as several other UK food retailers post record-breaking Christmas results, with sales at Sainsbury’s jumping seven per cent during the period and Aldi sales reaching £1.4 billion.

More than 1.3 million customers shopped at Lidl in the run up to Christmas, helping the discounter increase sales by almost a quarter year on year and sales at Marks and Spencer jumped by seven per cent.

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