Menswear chain Moss Bros today said suit sales were on the rise as workers dress to impress during the recession.

"We are selling a lot of suits," said finance director Michael Hitchcock. "People who haven't got a job are smartening up to find one, and people who have got a job are smartening up to keep it."

Sales of suits were 27% higher in the first 16 weeks of the financial year than they were in the same period a year ago, but it was not enough to stop sales of all goods decline 3.9% in its High Street stores.

Hitchcock said business was hit by a disastrous start to the financial year in February when snow and ice put off shoppers.

Same-store sales were down 9.4% in the first six weeks but were off just 2% in the following 10 weeks to 23 May.

Hitchcock said: "We are seeing an improving trend. We were massively affected by the two weeks of snow and ice and since then things have been getting better. At times like this, people are resorting to brands that they trust, and we are a brand they can trust."

It came as a survey showed confidence among consumers held steady in May as the gloom over the economy was offset by greater optimism about household finances.

The GfK/NOP consumer confidence index was unchanged at minus 27 in May - still in negative territory but equal to April's reading which was the highest in almost a year.

"This is still very low historically, but is at least standing firm in the face of continuing depressed markets and May's warnings of a possible [swine flu] pandemic," said Rachel Joy, an analyst at GfK.

But Hitchcock said the optimism on the High Street and in the wider economy could be short-lived.

He warned of a dreaded "W" shaped recession, where a brief recovery is followed by another sharp slump, rather than the "V" shaped recovery hoped for by the Government.

"I'm more on the W side than the V side," he said. "I think there is a lot more turmoil to come in terms of the financial system and that creates a bit of nervousness. No one knows what is going to happen."