John Lewis as you knew it is already dead
Reeling from a massive pandemic-induced loss, boss Sharon White is throwing everything at the company’s survival
11 March 2021 • 12:59pm
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John Lewis as you know it is already dead. The pandemic has seen to that. Middle England s favourite retailer was in trouble before Covid swept through the high street but the downturn has left it facing an existential crisis.
Shops are being closed, acres of store space axed, 1,500 partners who thought they had a job for life shown the door, and no staff bonus for the first time since 1953. Even the sacred Never Knowingly Undersold price pledge is under threat. Boss Sharon White has warned that it could take five years to recover.
High streets shudder as John Lewis sharpens its axe again
Department stores in shopping centres and prime sites may never reopen after lockdown lifts as retailer looks for profitable future
11 March 2021 • 5:14pm
The John Lewis that emerges from the pandemic will be nothing like the high street lynchpin it was a year ago.
Dame Sharon White, the chairman, says she has witnessed a decade of change in the retail sector in the space of 12 months.
To survive she says John Lewis needs to have “the right space in the right place”, to cut costs, and to adapt to the rapid shift to online shopping that was underway even before the pandemic struck.
Reiss has become the fashion insider s high street secret weapon
Credit: Reiss
I have several friends who are going to hate me for outing their shopping secret here, but the best place to find luxe-looking, stealth wealth basics without a Brunello Cucinelli price tag is Reiss.
They’re not alone. Lots of fashion insiders like me know it’s a reliable go-to for wardrobe classics that echo the aesthetics of Bottega Veneta and The Row. One colleague described it as a British answer to Massimo Dutti, the quietly chic upscale sister brand to Zara.
And now high street juggernaut Next has clocked its potential, following an announcement on Wednesday that it had bought a 25 percent stake in a deal worth £200 million.