John Lewis - 8 stores going

[SerendipityJane]

Not great for fans of instore shopping.

Hardly surprising. I expect a good few stores to close, as businesses use Covid as a cover to shut down loss-making shops.

That's a shame. I only really use them for homeware and the Croydon Home shop is going.

Really really sad news. Not surprising in these strange times and horrible for those staff affected.

Tbh I’m not surprised. Have been in a number of times, but often it’s just to browse, was having the same conversation with my mum earlier.

I suspect this would always have been on the cards but COVID have given them something to hide behind. Much like the restaurant chains who have gone into administration - a lot of them were already in trouble and would likely have gone sooner rather than later anyway.

@SerendipityJane

Not great for fans of instore shopping.

I'm not a fan of online shopping. They have closed so many post offices round where I live that I would spend more time queuing to send parcels back than it would take to go shopping.

Plus, I simply cannot buy shoes online, I need to try on about 20 pairs of shoes before I find any that feel comfortable.

The choice for those of use who don't hate in store shopping is getting smaller and smaller :(

John Lewis was our only decent shop. I’m not exaggerating either.

They said the 8 stores were in difficulty even before Covid 19. Very sad for the partners who will lose their jobs.

Yeah, I'm sad about Croydon JL At Home store going.
They said they were going to build a proper John Lewis as the anchor in the Westfield/Hammerson development in central Croydon which has been postponed again and again. Running down Whitgift and Centrale in anticipation, kicking existing tennants out, getting shabbier every year.

I really think it's not going to get built now.
What a waste.

The Watford one was lovely, too, it's a shame. I love John Lewis.

It seems in two full range shops are going - Birmingham and Watford. Wonder why those ? The deranged and pointless rebranding of a couple of years ago can’t have helped the bottom line.

The Birmingham one was brand new, and supposedly their flagship store. What does that say for the company?
I'm guessing it was far too expensive for what it was bringing in, in that location.

That should have said ONLY two full range

They built a whole shopping centre in Birmingham around JL. Thats that shopping centre destroyed then.

The business rates in Birmingham Grand Central must be astronomical.

I hope it's not the beginning of the end. It's such a good shop for home stuff. I've bought cheaper on amazon before and always end up buying again due to poor materials

I once went into the Brum one. On the vague lookout for a milk frothing thermometer. The sales assistant seemed ever so proud of the "Milk jug + thermometer" offering for (from memory) £15.

I went home and bought 3 thermometers from eBay for £6 - inc P&P.

Just noted on another thread that JL were the biggest single occupier in Grand Central, which was by no means short of empty units before all this.

(DS used to pop there for a haircut, as the barbers offered a pint while you waited )

I wonder how much of a selling point Grand Central was in HS2 ?

Gutted about the Birmingham one closing. We don’t have JL in NI and my sister are I love Birmingham for shopping trips, the massive JL being a huge draw.

Totally gutted about the Birmingham store. It’s such a shame. It will ruin the shopping centre and leave a big hole. It is my go to shop for everything!

Department stores seems to be dead really - House of Fraser, Debenhams and now John Lewis.

Really sorry for the staff in those stores, although the report I read says they would try to re-deploy as many as possible in other JLs or Waitroses, they've also agreed to some kind of 2 year training scheme for the staff who are made redundant I believe.

Grateful that our local one is still hanging on and due to re-open at the end of the month. We've lost Debenhams and HoF is on its way out, so only department store left is JL.

@Sparklingbrook

The business rates in Birmingham Grand Central must be astronomical.

Well they'll be even more, now a big payer has fucked off.

(Yes, I know that isn't how they work in practice. But at some point it must kick in).

@Fluffycloudland77

John Lewis was our only decent shop. I’m not exaggerating either.

Swindon? 😂

@GreeboIsMySpiritAnimal

The Watford one was lovely, too, it's a shame. I love John Lewis.

I wonder how that will effect the harlequin...and intu are in administration. .beginning of the end?

I was surprised. I thought John Lewis would be better placed than anyone to weather the storm.

We have a big one near us which is (thankfully) very very busy so I'm hoping that one is safe. John Lewis and Waitrose are my favourite shops!

I was surprised. I thought John Lewis would be better placed than anyone to weather the storm.

This isn't a storm. It's climate change.

I'm upset but not surprised. I was the yesterday and spent about £300 on random home things.

I love John Lewis, although the quality of stores varies quite a lot. Kingston is my local, but the one in Southampton was very impressive with staff, layout and general upkeep of the place. Bournemouth looked like an absolute dive last time I was there about 2 years ago