DJs feels no consumer love at Christmas

David Jones second quarter sales, which includes the vital Christmas period, have fallen 1.4 per cent with its home category the worst performer.

Total sales for the three months to January 26 fell to $590.1 million from $598.5 million in the previous corresponding period.

On a like-for-like basis, which excludes store openings and closures, sales were also down 1.4 per cent.

Despite the overall sales drop chief executive Paul Zahra said some categories performed well.

"We are pleased with the performance of our high margin fashion and beauty categories (such as womenswear, beauty, menswear, accessories and shoes) which delivered sales growth in second quarter 2013 and and first half 2013," he said.

"Our sales performance during this period was however adversely impacted by our home categories, in particular electronics, which continued to be challenging and subject to ongoing deflationary pressure."