Many Britons appear to be handling the prospect of recession and the economic downturn by staying at home to eat ready-made meals washed down with New World wines from upmarket stores, venturing out to shop only for cut-price goods.

Sales at John Lewis and Waitrose, the high street stalwarts of Middle England, rose last week as bargain-hunters went to summer sales and purchased more instant meals rather than going out to eat in restaurants.

At Waitrose, the supermarket chain that is part of the privately owned John Lewis Partnership, there was evidence that more Britons attempted to save money by eating in, driving sales up by 1.2 per cent since last year.

The company said: “The trend for home entertaining was strongly evident, with unit sales of the ‘As Good as Going Out' range up by 38 per cent on last year.”

Waitrose shoppers also appeared to be stocking up on wines on special offer and ready-made desserts. Pre-packed cake sales rose by 24 per cent year-on-year, while revenue on South African wines rose 132 per cent and New Zealand wine by 40 per cent.

John Lewis, the department store chain, had a 5.9 per cent increase in revenue from last year in the week ended July 12, helping partnership sales to rise from £127 million to £130.7 million for the week.

This turnaround in sales - only the second time in ten weeks that revenue has risen - was largely driven by sales of women's fashion, which rose by 16 per cent as cost-conscious women tried to take advantage of the clearance sales.

Sales of electrical and technology goods at John Lewis, which have been badly hit in recent months as budgets tighten and fewer people move house, were up by 3.8 per cent after prices on television sets were cut.

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