John Lewis boss: We’re an alternative to communism

Dame Sharon White, chairman of John Lewis Partnership, has complained about the retail group’s underperformance amid fears that staff will miss out on a bonus this year.

White said the company, which owns department stores and Waitrose supermarkets, needs to become more profitable and is “not commercially successful enough”.

In an interview broadcast on Radio 4 last week, just days after the Christmas trading frenzy ended, she said the partnership’s values ​​remain an integral part of the group.

“We have a constitution,” White said. ‘Formally, we are only allowed to make enough profit – not to maximize profit – to continue the cooperation. It may sound very grand, but it is to make the world a happier place.

“We were founded as an alternative to communism. I don’t know if people who shop in Waitrose or John Lewis really appreciate this. This idea is that you care about more than profit.’

John Lewis cut his losses to £26m in the year to January 2022 from £517m 12 months earlier.

Industry sources believe John Lewis may have benefited from a late rise in demand.

But nervous employees will have to wait until March to find out if that was enough to get them a payout.

White said, “These are challenging times for all of retail. We’re in a very, very competitive market. A market that has only become more competitive due to Covid and now with heavy inflationary pressure, with rising labor costs and customers with much more choice on what to spend their money on.’