John Lewis appoints first pan-partnership Head of Loyalty and intensifies customer-first strategy

The John Lewis Partnership has appointed Emily Wells as its first pan-partnership Head of Loyalty, and has signed five-year deals with customer insights firm Dunnhumby and marketing tech company Eagle Eye as it looks to deepen customer relationships and offer increased benefits.

Wells, who joins in June 2023, will work alongside John Lewis Customer Director, Charlotte Lock, and will lead all of the loyalty programmes across the partnership “to drive an improved experience” for the retailer’s customers. She will also develop and launch a new pan-partnership loyalty proposition in 2024.

Wells has held a number of senior partnership and proposition roles over the last five years at Tesco, most recently as Head of Loyalty Strategy. Prior to that, she held commercial and strategy roles across various retail and consulting settings.

Charlotte Lock said: “Today’s announcements show the ambition we have to transform how our much loved brands can deliver a more personalised experience for customers. With Emily’s appointment and our new partnerships with Dunnhumby and Eagle Eye, we can better help our customers however, whenever and wherever they shop with us.”

Wells added: “I'm delighted to be joining at such an exciting time for the business. With such a rich brand history and ambitious plans, I look forward to working with the team to deliver great things for our customers and the partnership as we take the loyalty proposition across Waitrose and John Lewis to the next level.”

The John Lewis Partnership has appointed Emily Wells as its first pan-partnership Head of Loyalty.

The move builds on the successful relaunches in the last year of My John Lewis and My Waitrose loyalty programmes. My John Lewis has grown to five million members who shop more frequently at a rate of 2.5 times more than non-members.

Growth has also been boosted by the introduction of John Lewis Members Week, which is held a number of times throughout the year with exclusive events and offers. The next one is running in stores and online from 26 April to 1 May 2023.

More than nine million customers are members of My Waitrose, which in the past year has rewarded customers with £100m in personalised money-off rewards.

Dunnhumby’s Customer Data Science Platform offers a unique mix of technology, software and consulting, enabling businesses to increase revenue and profits by delivering exceptional experiences for their customers – in-store, offline and online. It employs over 2,500 experts in offices throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, working for brands including Tesco and Coca-Cola.

Eagle Eye is a leading Software as a Service (SaaS) technology company “transforming marketing by creating digital connections that enable personalised performance marketing in real time” - through coupons, loyalty, apps, subscriptions and gift services.