JJB Sports plc, the UK’s largest sporting goods retailer, said it posted a 2.0% rise in comp store sales for the six-week holiday period through January 1, while total revenue for the period increased 4.0% versus the prior-year period. The gains are a reversal of the declines seen in the 22-week period through the end of the year, but the sales apparently came with lower margins resulting from heavier promotional efforts. The retailer said the increase in sales more than compensated for the reduction in GM suffered in the last two weeks of the year.

Comps for the half-year period were off 0.4%, with slight increases in all categories except footwear, which posted a 2.6% decline. Gross margins were lower in clothing and footwear categories, while other categories had flat margins to last year.