Waitrose weekly like-for-like sales jump 4.7 pct

LONDON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Waitrose, the upmarket grocery arm of employee-owned British retailer John Lewis [JLP.UL], said on Monday a surge in sales in the days before Christmas had continued over the New Year festivities.

Like-for-like food sales were up 4.7 percent in the week ended Jan. 3, the group said in a trading update.

For the 12 days over Christmas and New Year, like-for-like food sales were up 3.1 percent.

"In these challenging economic times we have put a strong emphasis on improving our offer to customers, including more promotions than ever before, deeper discounts and a price commitment programme," Waitrose Managing Director Mark Price said in a statement.

"Our efforts have paid dividends, with our Christmas and New Year trading figures demonstrating there is a place for well positioned, premium food."

"We predict a tough first quarter -- during which we will ramp up our promotional programme -- and stronger sales for Waitrose in the second quarter," he added.

Waitrose also said a recently completed survey by retail analysts Verdict Research and due to be published later this year showed it grew customer numbers during 2008, increasing customer share of total visitors by 7 percent.

"Our customers are remaining loyal to us albeit shopping differently and getting better value," Price said. (Reporting by Mark Potter)