John Lewis & Partners has announced the closure of eight stores to secure its long-term future.
Sadly these stores will not reopen following the coronavirus pandemic, and now approximately 1,300 Partners across the eight shops will enter into consultation.
The shops that will close include two of the smallest in the estate – travel hub shops at Heathrow and St Pancras, four At Home shops in Croydon, Newbury, Swindon and Tamworth, and two full size department stores in Birmingham and Watford.
The announcement comes as John Lewis Partnership announced the final wave of shop reopenings in recent weeks. Aberdeen, Ashford, Brent Cross, Chichester, Oxford, Peterborough, Reading, Sheffield, White City Westfield and the Swindon outlet will reopen on 30th July.
The Leicester store will reopen when the local lockdown for the city is lifted.
A statement from the John Lewis Partnership explains: 'Prior to the pandemic, the eight shops identified were already financially challenged and the pandemic has accelerated the switch from shopping in-store to online. Before the virus struck, 40 per cent of John Lewis sales were online. This could now be closer to 60 to 70 percent of total sales this year and next.'
If redundancies are confirmed, 'every effort would be made to find new roles where possible for Partners who wish to remain within the Partnership', with potential opportunities at local Waitrose shops or working for johnlewis.com and waitrose.com.
Sharon White, Chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, said: 'Closing a shop is always incredibly difficult and today’s announcement will come as very sad news to customers and Partners. However, we believe closures are necessary to help us secure the sustainability of the Partnership – and continue to meet the needs of our customers however and wherever they want to shop. Redundancies are always an absolute last resort and we will do everything we can to keep as many Partners as possible within our business.'
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