Matthew Williamson boosts H&M

Fashion retailer H&M has defied the high-street gloom and posted an 8% rise in sales in April compared to last year.

Total sales, which haven’t been adjusted to show figures from stores that have been open for at least a financial year, rose by 19%.

The world’s third largest clothing retailer’s sales rise ended eight successive months of like for like falls.

The stores sales were given a boost in the final week of April when a much trailed Matthew Williamson range sold-out within a few days of launch.

Williamson’s range was rolled out from 200 to 1,600 stores yesterday, alongside the launch of his first menswear range for the high street brand.

Designer high street ranges have boosted mid-market retailers, especially since consumers started demanding more bargains in the midst of the recession.

Debenhams recently announced it was expanding floorspace dedicated to its “Designer at…” range, which also includes designs by Williamson, after sales rose by 11% for the six months to the end of February.