Online sales increased by more than 105% year-on-year, but Boots still has not offset overall losses

According to foreign media reports, as the lockdown continues, people's shopping habits have changed. Boots' online sales increased by more than 105% in the second quarter , but it still failed to offset the loss of overall sales. Its Boots UK sales fell by 17.8% .

The retailer's US parent company, Walgreens Boots Alliance, has revealed today that quarterly sales at drugstore chain Boots have fallen by nearly 18%. The drop in sales is due to the ongoing impact of Covid-19, which is reducing the number of customers using UK high street stores.

Walgreens Boots Alliance said Covid-19 is continuing to impact consumers on crosswalks and high streets. It is reported that Boots UK sales have continued to decline since the reintroduction of stricter restrictions in the UK last November . In early autumn , customer traffic trends recovered, but there has been no significant improvement.

Parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance reported a 4.6% sales increase, despite Boots' large market share in the UK.

The rise of one-stop grocery shopping, where shoppers buy all the food they need from one place, weighed heavily on Boots, which was unable to cater to this shopping habit.

In order to quickly cater to consumer demand, Boots accelerated the development of the online market. The only category of goods in which it gained market share was beauty products , which were very popular. It is reported that the earnings per share of the parent company of Boots increased by 8.7% to $1.06.

And, Walgreens Boots Alliance has also been included in the U.S. vaccination program, administering more than 8 million doses to date.

"Overall we have delivered a good financial quarter which exceeded expectations despite the significant impact of Covid-19," said Boots chief executive Rosalind Brewer, who took over the top job on March 15 .

While growth has exceeded expectations, Boots still needs to continue to expand its online business and still has work to do to stabilize its base business.

Boots parent Walgreens Boots Alliance revealed in January that its first quarter trading had exceeded expectations. Sales rose 5.7% to $36.3bn (£26.7bn) in the three months , while profits fell by a still-strong 11.2%.

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