Shoppers' growing appetite for menswear and beauty products helped spur an "improving trend" in sales, UK department store chain House of Fraser said today.

The new owner of UK department store House of Fraser today promised a shake-up for Britain’s “boring” high street after buying the chain for £351m (€522.3m) this week.

House of Fraser today said a reluctance among householders to spend on big-ticket items had left recent sales in negative territory.

Department store group House of Fraser forecast “satisfactory” half-year results today after benefiting from improved sales and cost savings.