As the high street is worsening John Lewis are reportedly to close more stores to cut their significant property costs.
According to the Sunday Times the department store chain are to close eight more stores, following to impact of the pandemic.
The company currently operates 42 stores are in the middle of a shake up which is aimed to increase their sales through online channels.
John Lewis are hoping to save £50m which is part of their wider plans to reduce their total costs by £300m.
Andy Barr, retail expert and co-founder of online price tracking website said, “Retailers are doing all they can to survive throughout this pandemic and if the recent headlines surrounding the collapse of brick-and-mortar Debenhams and Arcadia stores are anything to go by, this move from John Lewis is their last-ditch attempt to cut costs and keep some sort of presence within the UK high street, whilst maintaining their online offerings to those in the areas losing physical stores.
“In these hard times, this move really continues to highlight the fact that that it doesn’t matter how high up you are in a company, no one is safe in terms of their job as a further 1,500 head office staff from John Lewis are set to be axed.
“With the current state that our economy is in and the majority of households attempting to financially budget and cut costs where they can; it is hard to see how a brand deemed ‘high end’ like John Lewis will be able to recover when so many online retailers offer cheaper and more heavily discounted goods and services.
“Many might also argue that the real appeal of a John Lewis store lay in the one-on-one customer service and advice available, so losing this benefit is not likely to keep loyal customers – who were previously happy to pay hiked up prices for a quality consumer experience – happy in the long-run.”
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