---
title: "Ocado Retail Celebrates Record Christmas Sales as MS Partnership Flourishes"
publisher: "Stockmark.IT"
author: "Stockmark.IT Website"
published: "2025-01-17T04:37:37+00:00"
modified: "2025-01-15T16:43:16+00:00"
date: 2025-01-17
canonical: "https://stockmark.it/ocado-retail-celebrates-record-christmas-sales-as-ms-partnership-flourishes/"
category: "Online grocery"
categories: ["Online grocery", "Retail"]
format: "news"
language: "en-GB"
---

# Ocado Retail Celebrates Record Christmas Sales as MS Partnership Flourishes

**Published:** January 17, 2025
**Author:** Stockmark.IT Website
**Categories:** Online grocery, Retail

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British online grocer Ocado Retail has reported a remarkable 17.5% surge in retail revenue to £715.8 million for the 13 weeks leading to December 1, marking a significant milestone in its recovery journey. The joint venture between Ocado Group and Marks & Spencer has demonstrated robust growth, particularly during the festive season.

Chief Executive Hannah Gibson attributes this success to the strengthened partnership with M&S, highlighting the expansion of M&S product range availability from two-thirds to nearly 100% over the past two years. The strategic decision to reduce prices in 2024 has yielded positive results, with volume growth reaching 17% year-on-year during the fourth quarter.

Active customers grew by an impressive 12.1% to 1.12 million, whilst average weekly orders increased by 16.9% to 476,000. The festive period proved particularly successful, with M&S party food selections, including hot honey halloumi and pigs in blankets, emerging as customer favourites.

Stuart Machin, M&S Chief Executive, confirmed the joint venture’s strong performance, reporting a 20% increase in M&S volume on Ocado’s platform compared to the previous year. This success mirrors M&S’s broader resurgence, which has seen the retailer return to the FTSE 100 following strong performances in both food and clothing divisions.

Despite ongoing discussions regarding a final payment dispute between M&S and Ocado Group over unmet performance targets, Gibson maintains that the partnership is “working really strongly” together. The company’s focus remains on optimising existing infrastructure, though future expansion plans include a new customer fulfilment centre at an unspecified date.

The positive results represent a significant turnaround for Ocado Retail, which had previously struggled to maintain momentum following its pandemic-era boom. Annual retail revenue reached £2.7 billion in the year to December 1, with volume growth of 12.9% and consistent growth in the active customer base signalling sustained recovery.

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**Original URL:** https://stockmark.it/ocado-retail-celebrates-record-christmas-sales-as-ms-partnership-flourishes/
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