Waitrose is ramping up investment in its store portfolio with plans to open up to 100 convenience shops across the UK over the next five years. The announcement comes as we unveil our latest vision for what our shops could look like for customers in the future.

Our John Barnes shop in Finchley Road, London will test new concepts as part of our store investment programme. This will see us inject a record £1bn over the next three years into new stores and improvements to 150 existing shops, almost half of our estate.

The transformation of the Finchley Road store builds on the revamp of our Sudbury shop, in Suffolk, last year. These stores, along with the makeover of our Maidenhead shop in the autumn, will mark the next evolution of our shop proposition. They will be used to trial new services, product offerings and concept upgrades over the next 12 months before a new blueprint for Waitrose shops is revealed in 2025.

The investment in our store portfolio will focus on the areas that differentiate us, including:

• Upgrading service counters: At a time when many food retailers are removing theirs, meat and fish counters have been given a new look and upgraded.
• Award-winning wine selection given greater prominence: Finchley Road is the  first Waitrose to feature an entirely chilled department for white wine, champagne, rose and beer.
• Greater flexibility to respond to local demand: Finchley Road has given more space to top sellers including adding a second dry aged beef cabinet and dedicated parmesan section – 12% of Waitrose parmigiano counter sales come from the one store.
• More third party collaboration: A new and exclusive partnership with Crosstown doughnuts has been introduced as part of a refreshed bakery and we have expanded our concession with Sushi Daily to include a Hot Wok offer of ready-to-eat dishes.
• More dedicated space for on demand grocery orders:  The store becomes the first Waitrose shop to feature a hatch to allow riders to make collections outside of the store’s opening hours. It is also the first UK supermarket to have a dedicated internal space for on-demand grocery collections due to the increased popularity of orders through Deliveroo and Uber Eats.

The first new Waitrose store in six years will open in Hampton Hill later this year, subject to planning approval, with a second following in Greater London which will open early in the new year. The convenience store will trigger one of our biggest periods of expansion as we look to reach more customers having served a record 15 million last year.

“Waitrose will always offer fantastic food, but the groundwork we have undertaken behind the scenes in recent years means we can now focus on growth through new shops and ensuring our existing ones are providing great shopping experiences that match the quality of our products. 

“The transformation of our Finchley Road store marks the next evolution of our journey to create a great shopping experience for our customers, underpinned by a high-quality product offering tailored to the local area, and the quality service we are synonymous with. In designing the store, we have taken time to understand how our customers like to shop, and used this knowledge to introduce new concepts that will be tested and rolled out nationally as we continue to work towards the Waitrose of the future.”

James Bailey, Executive Director for Waitrose

“Our investment in our Waitrose store portfolio is already yielding strong results, with customers responding positively. As our retail driven plan continues to gain traction, our growing number of shoppers and increasing customer satisfaction scores are clear indicators of its success. This is a result of our unrelenting focus on improving the customer experience of our retail businesses, taking the love that exists for both brands and making sure customers are rewarded with better shops, the highest quality products, and the best service.”

Nish Kankiwala, Chief Executive Officer of the John Lewis Partnership

Waitrose has also continued to significantly invest in value and innovation this year to help attract and excite customers. We have invested millions of pounds in lowering hundreds of prices while refusing to compromise on the quality and animal welfare that sets us apart. We have relaunched our premium No.1 range, agreed exclusive partnerships with Yotam Ottolenghi and ZOE’s Daily30+, and acquired the restaurant-quality meal-kit delivery service, Dishpatch.

The latest Kantar figures reported last week show customers are responding to the investment in our offering, Waitrose recorded our strongest growth since November 2023 and is continuing to gain market share after July’s figures showed an increase for the first time since January 2022. We were also named top food retailer by the Institute of Customer Service last month.

The John Lewis Partnership is pleased to announce the appointment of Jason Tarry as its seventh Chairman following Sharon White’s decision to step down at the end of her term.

Jason brings over 33 years of experience at Tesco where he was most recently the UK & Ireland CEO, a role he held for six years. His experience spans grocery, general merchandise and fashion in senior commercial, operational and general management positions, having joined the Tesco graduate programme in 1990.

In addition to delivering market leading grocery performance in the UK, he led the expansion of F&F Clothing across Europe as Group CEO. Jason is expected to take up the role in September, at which point Sharon will step down and support the transition as required.

“The Board extends its huge thanks to Sharon for successfully leading the Partnership through one of the most testing periods in its history – first Covid and then the cost of living crisis. She has faced into the toughest decisions and overseen the Partnership’s financial recovery; we are in good financial health with a return to profit, and have a strong balance sheet with record investment planned this year. Sharon has also helped ensure that employee ownership of the Partnership is secure, is demonstrably focused on its purpose as a force for good and with an open and inclusive culture.

“As the Partnership moves into the next phase of its modernisation focused on our core retail business as well future growth, we are confident that Jason will provide the kind of inspirational leadership, a proven track record in multi-channel, multi-category retail success and a strong identification with Partnership values that we are seeking in this role. Jason has impressed everyone throughout the interview process with his warmth, his belief in the Partnership’s ideals and democratic principles and his appreciation for our unique and special brands.” 

Rita Clifton, Deputy Chairman and Chair of the Nomination Committee,

“I’m delighted to be handing over to Jason, who has a combination of fantastic retail experience with leadership through transformation. From my many conversations with Jason, he has demonstrated a clear appreciation for the Partnership model and champions it. I look forward to welcoming him to the Partnership in September and carrying out a smooth handover. 

“I also want to thank Partners for their commitment and hard work; it’s been a huge privilege to be Chairman and I’m proud of what everyone has achieved. We’ve built the foundations for a stronger Partnership and I’m confident that Jason will take it from strength to strength.”

Sharon White, Chairman of the John Lewis Partnership

“The Partnership and its brands stand for trust, value, quality and service and it’s a great privilege to be succeeding Sharon as the seventh Chairman. The Partnership is unique and I’ve long been an admirer of the employee-ownership model, its values and Partner-led customer service. This starts with a sharp focus on being brilliant retailers for customers and investing in growth. I’m looking forward to working with the Board, Nish and the Executive Team to deliver its clear strategy.” 

Jason Tarry, Chairman designate

The John Lewis Partnership celebrated its recently qualified apprentices at a special celebratory event this week.  150 of its apprentices took part, coinciding with the National Apprenticeship Week.

Apprentices from across John Lewis and Waitrose attended, which was the culmination of a day of workshops and focus on apprenticeships, skills for life and ongoing learning.  The event recognised and commended the achievements of each apprentice that has completed a course over the past year, and highlighted the transformative value that apprenticeships bring to Partners’ learning and lifelong development.

Apprenticeships are part of the fabric of our brands, with information from the archives recording the first apprentice advert over a hundred years ago in 1908:  The Western Gazette of 10 April 1908: under the heading Grocery and Provision advertised a “Vacancy for well-educated Youth as Apprentice. Good class trade under direct supervision of principal. Live in. – For terms apply to Waite, Rose and Taylor, Acton LONDON W”.

And the fledgling Partnership offered three apprenticeships at Peter Jones in 1916 “to learn the Art, Trade or Business of a section of the Drapery trade”. The indentures were signed by the apprentice, a parent, and J Spedan Lewis.

Within the Partnership, there are expected to be approximately 700 existing Partners starting out on an apprenticeship this year – with courses ranging from butchery to data.  This allows the existing workforce to continually learn new skills and maintain life-long learning.

Additionally, the Partnership last year transferred £1.1 million of apprenticeship levy to 19 charities supporting care experienced young people as part of our ongoing commitment to Building Happier Futures.

A total of 77 apprentices were funded to complete apprenticeships, this has enabled their charities to produce more robust data and support their fundraising efforts and impact reporting.  The John Lewis Partnership has a target to transfer £2 million during 2024/25 from our levy to charities supporting care experienced people.

“The pivotal role that apprenticeships play in nurturing talent, and fostering skills for life was very evident yesterday (at our event).  

“While the apprenticeship programme is undeniably a catalyst for learning and development, it could still go further and deliver so much more.  We would welcome reforms to make training and apprenticeships much more flexible and relevant to our future skills needs. 

“For example, it would open up the possibility of a pre-employment course to help potential apprentices reach the required level to start a full apprenticeship, or pre-employment training for vulnerable groups such as those who are care experienced to support them into work.”  

Ceira Thom, Head of Learning and Inclusion and Belonging at the John Lewis Partnership