Luxury retailer David Jones Ltd barely saw sales growth during the initial quarter of the current financial year yet the company maintained its upbeat forecast of up to 10 percent profit growth for the rest of fiscal 2011.

The uptrend department store said on Thursday that its like-for-like sales revenue chalked up a total of $466.6 million in the three months leading to October 30, which is an improvement of 3.2 percent when pitted against the sales figures posted in the prior corresponding period.

David Jones chief executive Paul Zahra said that the latest sales numbers were generally in line with previously projected guidance of flat sales for the initial quarter of financial year 2010/11 even if accumulated revenues were slightly negative.

Mr Zahra said that the company's sales actually spiked a bit by 1.2 percent during the first quarter as more trading space was afforded by the refurbishment of David Jones' Melbourne store.

However, the numbers pale in comparison to market forecast's of up to 2.6 percent like-for-like sales growth for the initial quarter as David Jones' close competitor Myer posted sales decline of 1.7 percent in the same period due largely to soft movements of consumer electronics.

Also, both retailers agreed that Australian shoppers are still hesitant to part ways with their money as Mr Zahra offered that consumer behaviour is still generally patchy and such sentiments were compounded by the negative effects of televisions' considerable price deflation.

It appears too that consumers were focusing on the essentials when it comes to their buying pattern at this time as David Jones echoed Myer's report that accessories, apparel and furniture were the main contributors of impressive sales performances.

David Jones said that further guidance updates would not be known until sales data from the second quarter starts coming in, which is also the onset of the Christmas season and traditionally the peak season of Australia's retail industry.

Still, Mr Zahra said that David Jones would adhere to its previous guidance of five to ten percent sales growth for fiscal 2011, expressing confidence that the numbers were achievable in light of the upbeat mood delivered by the positive re-opening of the Bourke Street Mall David Jones store in Melbourne.