John Lewis CEO calls on next government to deliver “stability” after turbulent recent years

John Lewis CEO Nick Kankiwala has called on whoever wins the next general election to bring some stability back to the economy, which would instil greater customer confidence in the wake of economic and political unrest in recent years.

Speaking to Sky News yesterday, following the John Lewis Partnership reporting its first full-year profit since before the pandemic, Kankiwala said: "There's no doubt that the last few years have been tough for families, with inflation, paying the electricity bill, mortgage rates have gone up. Now, we have enjoyed a growth in our customers despite that environment.

"My ask from a broader perspective is that we have stability. That makes such a big difference to customers buying big ticket items, or even the day-to-day. That would be my request.

"I think encouraging growth is important for our economy, along with stability so customers can make those decisions in an environment where they trust the next year is going to be similar to this year, and I don't think we have had that in years just recently past."

The John Lewis Partnership, which owns the John Lewis department stores and Waitrose supermarket chain, yesterday reported pre-tax profits of £56 million for the year to 27 January 2024, against losses of £234 million in the previous year. Sales across the partnership were up 1% to £12.4 billion.

In a statement, the retailer also said that after "careful consideration" it would not pay its workers an annual bonus for the second year running but said it would increase overall pay for employees by a record £116 million this year. That marks only the third time since 1953 that the group has not paid out an annual staff bonus.

The company also announced recently that it is mulling a 10% cut in its workforce, accounting for around 11,000 jobs, which could happen over the next five years as part of its aim to save £900 million by 2028.