The ’Heston effect’ seems to be working once again for Waitrose this Christmas after the retailer reported a 6.8% jump in weekly sales, helped by sales of the celebrity chef’s Hidden Sauce Figgy Pudding.
The pudding, under the Heston from Waitrose brand, was launched as chef Heston Blumenthal’s limited edition Christmas puddings, which went on sale last week in stores and online for £14.99, is selling on auction site eBay for over £100.
The traditional fig Christmas pudding contains vine fruits from Turkey, Californian Mission figs, English cider and French brandy. Inside is a ’hidden’ ball of toffee sauce.
A surge in sales from Blumenthal’s range is not unusual for the supermarket chain. In 2010, Heston’s Hidden Orange Pudding also found itself on eBay, selling for £1,000, as Waitrose’s entire supply of 25,000 were sold within weeks. In 2011 they quadrupled numbers and still sold out.
This year they have trebled supplies, whilst producing around 50,000 of the ‘hidden sauce’ puddings in a bid to keep shelves stocked until Christmas. The mini Hidden Clementine pudding, which launched last year and experienced good sales, also returned to stores.
The supermarket said that they have also experienced a rise in online shopping at 43.5 per cent higher than last year.
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