John Lewis submits £500m London planning bid for 800 homes – but questions remain about affordability June 30, 2023 John Lewis is pressing on with its shift away from the high street and into residential property by submitting initial planning applications for new ‘build to rent’ homes in the capital The hard-hit retailer submitted proposals for nearly 800 rental homes on London sites in West Ealing and Bromley, with plans for a site in [...]
Hybrid hinders London commercial space as John Lewis slashes head office value by £15.6m June 20, 2023 The John Lewis Partnership (JLP) has slashed the value of its London head office by £15.6m in the latest signal that hybrid working trends continue to hinder the capital’s commercial work space. It comes as last month the retail group revealed that it was ending the lease on its head office in Victoria, London as [...]
John Lewis property chief resigns in latest top rank exit June 18, 2023 John Lewis property boss Chris Harris has resigned after a five-year stint, placing further pressure on the struggling retailer’s chair Dame Sharon White. Harris, who held the role of property director, handed in his resignation last week, according to reports in the Sunday Times, but will remain at the firm until November. He had played [...]
Sharon White: John Lewis will be profitable in three years June 8, 2023 John Lewis boss Sharon White has reportedly not ruled out tapping up outside investment to bring the struggling upmarket retailer back to profitably by 2026, however vowed that the would remain business employee owned. White told members of the Employee Owned Association – which represents UK organisations which are employee owned- that the plan to [...]
‘Blind eye’: Former John Lewis boss on CBI and Tesco scandals May 24, 2023 The former boss of John Lewis has spoken out on the scandals engulfing the CBI and Tesco suggesting that senior staff may have been “turning a blind eye” to bad behaviour. Andy Street, Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, spoke at a Q&A with InHouse where he discussed issues at the lobbying group, the Confederation [...]
Sharon White: Embattled John Lewis chair survives confidence vote – just about May 10, 2023 John Lewis chair Sharon White will remain chief of the business after winning a vote of confidence on her future leadership, but remains under considerable pressure with partners voting against her performance over the last year. White secured one victory at a John Lewis Partnership meeting held on Wednesday, with a majority of partners saying [...]
UK retail giant set to ditch central London office space amid job losses May 1, 2023 John Lewis is looking to cut its office space by over 50 per cent after the company seeks to drastically cut costs benefiting from a loose hybrid working approach. The John Lewis Partnership, which also owns Waitrose, first announced its plans to move offices last year, waiting until the lease of its current Victoria HQ [...]
John Lewis boss vows to keep employee-owned retailer ‘unique’ April 26, 2023 Dame Sharon White has vowed to preserve what makes the John Lewis Partnership “unique,” as the chief of the struggling retail chain outlines how the company plans to navigate the cost of living crisis and retain its customer base. Dame Sharon told The Telegraph retailers were continuing to see the “effects of the pandemic” and [...]
Why is John Lewis overhauling its loyalty card scheme? April 25, 2023 John Lewis and Waitrose are both preparing to launch new loyalty card schemes as the partnership looks to turn around the business. The John Lewis Partnership, which owns the department store and upmarket grocery store, has drafted in Dunnhumby, the company which helped establish Tesco’s clubcard scheme in the 1990s and, also, promotions business Eagle [...]
CBI exodus: Which firms have quit or suspended their relationship with the lobby group? April 21, 2023 A slew of top firms have quit or suspended engagement with the CBI today after the lobby group was rocked by new allegations of sexual abuse.