John Lewis granted a royal warrant from King Charles
- Royal Warrant of Appointment retailer is pinning hopes on Christmas spending
John Lewis has been awarded the Royal Warrant of Appointment as a supplier of household goods and furniture to King Charles.
Peter Ruis, Executive Director of John Lewis, said: “It is a proud moment to be recognized by His Majesty with his Royal Warrant.
‘For 160 years we have been focused on providing excellent customer service and the highest quality products, and the Royal Warrant is testament to the hard work of John Lewis’ partners and our suppliers.’
The retailer said the announcement also reflects its “ongoing commitment to supporting its local communities, while also championing high environmental standards.”
The update follows an announcement in May that the King had granted Waitrose its Royal Warrant of Appointment as grocers, wine and spirits retailers.
Today’s announcement also follows warrants granted by the late Queen to John Lewis Reading and John Lewis Oxford Street, while Peter Jones in Sloane Square had royal warrants of appointment from Prince Charles and the late Duke of Edinburgh.
Royal Approval: John Lewis has been awarded the Royal Warrant of Appointment as a supplier of household goods and furniture to King Charles
High street chains such as John Lewis are pinning their hopes on a Christmas boost over the Christmas period after a slump following a bleak budget for the sector.
With stores reeling from Rachel Reeves’ decision to burden the sector with £7 billion in extra costs, the boom in trade over Black Friday and the festive season this year is crucial, experts warn.
This follows a decline in store visits in November as customers continued to wait for discounts despite the post-budget ‘spending jitters’.
Signs of progress in John Lewis’ turnaround mission were eagerly awaited.
The company, which owns 34 department stores, was accused of losing its way after focusing on non-retail revenues, including build-to-rent projects.
However, in recent months there have been signs of a revival at the partnership, which made a small profit last year.
Last month the retailer’s chief executive Nish Kankiwala said “the buzz is back” at the group, which also owns Waitrose.
Nish Kankiwala will step down in March after just two years in the role and become an advisor to the board.
In September, John Lewis announced it would bring back its ‘never knowingly understated’ prize promise, two years after abandoning it.
The promise now also applies to online sales, where previously it only applied to in-store shopping. The group said it would use artificial intelligence to match prices from 25 top retailers.
The department store chain is trying to win back customers after a number of difficult years in which jobs were cut and several stores closed.
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