Harry Potter mania cast a spell on sales figures from bookshop Ottakar's yesterday after fans snapped up 80,000 copies of the latest book in just one day.
The figure helped like-for-like sales at the 117-store group rise 7.9 per cent in the 23 weeks to July 12.
Ottakar's laid on a series of special events for the June 21 launch of Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix, with the 60 stores opening at midnight selling 13,000 copies between them in the first hour of trading.
Demand for the fifth instalment of the teenage wizard's adventures far outstripped the previous book, which sold 20,000 copies at Ottakar's during launch day.
Ottakar's has sold 122,000 copies of the book, contributing to an overall sales rise of 34 per cent in the 23-week period.
Even without Potter, Ottakar's said its like-for-like sales increased 5.2 per cent after strong demand for books based on the Atkins diet.
The figures include an 11-week contribution from the 24 Hammicks bookshops acquired by Ottakar's in April.
Friday July 18, 2003
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