John Lewis in Trouble

[TrainedByCatsToBeScathing]

John Lewis are struggling, even the Waitrose side of things. 11,000 out of a workforce of 80,000 is a lot, I’m sad for their mostly female sales force and there’s many reasons for their problems particularly with them not adapting quickly to the challenge from online sales.

However I was a very regular shopper in my local John Lewis and I stopped completely after their patronising offensive response to my query about single sex changing rooms a few years ago. I’d buy furniture, white goods, kitchenware, electronics, carpet, clothes, toys, haberdashery, cosmetics, shoes even jewellery (I was shocked when I realised how much I defaulted to John Lewis as it took a little while to switch to alternatives some of my loyalty was convenience). Obviously I’m just one shopper but it never seemed a good idea to piss off loyal customers as when trading conditions are challenging you need those customers even more.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13082653/John-Lewis-threatens-staff-disciplinary-action-unacceptable-comments-internal-intranet-retail-giant-considers-cutting-11-000-jobs-bid-recover-230m-losses.html

A lot of Waitrose food is UPFs dressed up as healthy options, it's really important to read the back of the labels and not be lulled into a false sense of security because it's Waitrose.

My local store's produce aisles look like the sack of Rome but large free range eggs are cheaper than lidl eggs if you buy a box of 12 ! There are also things you can't find at normal supermarkets like sun dried tomatoes not in oil, real creme fraîche and buttermilk, venison, etc.

Did John Lewis ever change their mind and decide their cleaners were worthy of being made partners like the other employees?

So no need to bring it to work then Tristan?

For me, that Ryanair analogy is exactly why I didn't understand the ANYDAY strategy - if you want budget, you go to IKEA or Tesco, and you expect it to fall apart sooner rather than later. John Lewis/M&S still have that reputation for 'might cost a few pounds more but will last' quality that appeals to shoppers who aren't into fast fashion - but maybe when it comes down to it, there just aren't enough people out there with a 'buy cheap, buy twice' mentality to make the numbers add up?

I'd be interested to know how sites like Buy Me Once are doing - with the emphasis on ethically made, long-lasting products that might cost more initially but can be repaired/updated. Didn't John Lewis have a Studio range a few years ago, with limited edition furniture, etc? Just as M&S had that Heritage clothing line using traditional British manufacturers (sadly the designs were a bit too fashion forward for me, even though I loved the idea of it.)

I bought an Anyday mattress protector and it was fine, in fact it was better than most as it had a skirt to go around the mattress rather than those annoying bits of elastic at the corners so I bought another one, good value at £10 and as good as more expensive ones I have had.

To me, it felt odd for a company with a reputation for fair prices/strong quality to launch a product line that was supposed to be even cheaper than its standard John Lewis brand? Drawing attention to the price makes me assume the quality won't be as good - which might be unfair, but not if some of the t-shirts I bought (seams twisted, shrank, holes) were anything to go by...

Anecdata: my local M&S have a majority of middle aged women as staff (both in the local M&S food and in the clothing store). Some of the shelf stackers are much younger but the staff generally skew old.

I posted this video to another thread but I thought it belonged here.
It is worth a watch if you have an hour.
It is from 4 years ago and so it's fascinating to see how her changes have come into fruition.

All I can say is that she doesn't seem to care about the customer or want to keep the traditional JL/Waitrose customer. I don't think she even really cared about the business, she just saw it as an interesting social engineering tool.

She didn't understand that while there have been long term Partners who were emotionally invested with the company, many of its customers were too.

It never fails to amaze how many brands obsess about attracting new customers, at the expense of the ones they have already got (looking at you, BBC). Do they not understand how age works?

John Lewis seem hell-bent on attracting customers who are too young to have much spending power, when what they actually need to do is have an offer that is attractive to each generation when it hits about 30 and onwards.

Gen Z and Gen A will no doubt like different styles to those favoured by Gen X and Millenials, but they will still age into having the same core needs as us - for house, kids etc. My house looks very different from that of my grandparents/parents, in terms of style but (other than tech) the type of contents are the same. And Gen Z are already quite savvy, in terms of value for money and avoiding planned obsolescence, so they are shaping up to be perfect traditional JL customers of the future. But it appears there will be no JL left to meet their needs.

Yes, the ANYDAY and the expansion of Waitrose Essentials was very confusing and seemingly ill thought out.

Ex. buying school tights: they were the exact same fabric mix, made in the same country, same qty, but several pounds cheaper.

Beef mince: there are now three or four levels of quality, and they constantly change that with no information. It used to be Essentials, then the different beef types and now they have taken those away for, Essentials at fat % 'heritage breeds' and a specific farm name but no information, it's all nasty quality. I hesitate to give the dog the Essentials mince because it looks so fatty. You waste fifteen minutes just trying to get mince for ragu or tacos and end up walking away empty handed.

PersephoneSeethes · Today 14:09

All I can say is that she doesn't seem to care about the customer or want to keep the traditional JL/Waitrose customer. I don't think she even really cared about the business, she just saw it as an interesting social engineering tool.

I think it's part of the idea that any project manager can manage anything, even if they'd never worked in the field before. I work in offshore survey and one company brought in a land based construction engineer in and he was actively useless.

He had no idea who to call for equipment, much less how to get flights organised and vessels mobilised. He just tried to take people away from their work, delegating tasks to them and having tantrums when it all went wrong, because "Terry and Sandra wouldn't help!" It wasn't their job to come off something with a deadline and sort someone else's shit.

I know Waitrose has always been at the pricier end, but I went in for the first time in ages recently and almost laughed out loud at the prices -£5.50 for a sandwich, £6 for a couple of chicken Kievs.

Then their self checkout machine didn't work properly and they were out of stock of the thing I'd especially gone in for.

A joint of meat I'd bought was off. I complained online and after four back and forward emails, they finally refunded me via gift card the exact amount I'd paid. No compensation for the waste of energy / time spent cooking and sorting the issue out. And didn't even refund the card I'd paid on. Poor all round.

Exactly, I’m imagining with horror DS’s big bouncy adolescent Labrador galloping round JL slipping and sliding on the floor and cocking his leg up on the rails of expensive jackets before deciding he needs a shit now and doing one of his ginormous steaming dumps on the floor.

The thought is horrific.

What are they thinking, and that’s even before looking at the horrors of their celebrated diverse staff in fetish gear.

It’s got to be a joke right, who the fuck makes these decisions?

Gosh, that's difficult to believe.

They've unequivocally misjudged the zeitgeist.

Who the fuck signed off on it? It's got death knell written all over it.

If their judgment is this bad, no wonder they're failing.

I don't have a John Lewis anywhere near me, which is something MN posts used to make me feel wistful about! Times were that no-one on MN seemed to have a bad word to say about it. That's definitely changed; these days mumsnet mentions of John Lewis purchases seem as likely to be dire warnings to avoid shopping there, as they are product recommendations.

On that basis, I think John Lewis is running into financial trouble.

Having said all that, though, I'm guilty of a toddler-like expectation that John Lewis and M&S should focus their entire sales operation around me personally because over the years, thanks to some brilliant marketing and high street social history, they've developed an almost human presence in my life, in a way that Tesco/Next/Dunelm never could or will. I know this isn't reasonable but I suppose it explains the cutted-up pear indignation I feel when JLP insists on pushing financial services and housing schemes at me, when what I WANT IS RELIABLE BASICS AND A SPOTLESS CAFE.

Hmm, so our desire for basics without being preached to hasn’t gone down well the Sharon White and the Board. Apparently she’s on the moral high ground and we’re the lowest of the low. How very dare we ask for a shop that has products that we want without some fetishist bring their “whole self” to work…. To the Board of John Lewis - just all of you resign. I know you want to take it out of the Partnership model to refinance it for short term gain for fat cats, buts not the model that isn’t working it’s the Board. Resign

image via James Esses

She thinks she is Michelle Obama??

She does.

I didn't know they wanted to take it out of the partnership model?!

Gosh I feel for the staff. Imagine having to work with all that, then the people in charge double down.

Sheer recklessness with people's livelihoods.

And when her stint at JL is up White will move seamlessly into some other extremely well rewarded job.

I swerved Waitrose this morning and went to Lidl and the difference was painful. Well lit, shelves stocked and not having to dodge around shelfstackers and their trollets in the aisles all the time. Shame about the canned music but you can't have everything.

She's a copper bottomed fool who has ruined a good sustainable business which didn't actually exploit its workers or consumers

Don’t worry, Dame Sharon has relinquished her role as CEO , and is now ‘only ‘ the Chairman. The new CEO is a 65 year old man with an impressive CV who has however no retail experience in his long career. Oh, and they are ‘Bolstering the Board’ with a woman who worked for the National Lottery.

So that will be okay, then.

Well, as it seems to be a lottery as to whether the basics will be in any of their shops...