John Lewis Partnership (JLP) has announced its first annual bonus since 2022 following further progress in its post-pandemic transformation.
The employee-owned retailer, which includes not only the department store chain but also Waitrose supermarkets, revealed that its staff, known as partners, will receive an award of 2% of pay for their last financial year until the end of January.
This was driven by a 6% increase in trading profits to £134 million and a 5% increase in partnership sales to £13.4 billion.
Iran latest: Oil prices rise again as tankers burn
But it reported an overall loss before tax of £21 million.
The amount reflects an extraordinary charge of £120 million, mostly related to non-cash write-downs in the value of legacy technology, JLP said.
The company has closed underperforming department stores and cut thousands of jobs recently as part of efforts to restore profitability.
It decided not to reward partners for 2024/25 despite a strong increase in earnings, saving cash to invest in its client offering as the economic backdrop remains “challenging”.
Like other major employers, it has had to grapple with the impact of higher government-imposed costs, including rises in employer national insurance contributions.
Jason Terry, Chairman of JLP, said: “Our multi-year plan to invest in customers and our brands for the long term is working; we have grown customer numbers and achieved record satisfaction.
“Despite the slow market, challenging headwinds in a significant peak period and increased taxes, we decided to continue investing in the business and have delivered cash and profit growth.
“There is still a lot to do, but our growing cash generation and strong balance sheet enable us to invest more in our brands and our partners to improve our customer experience.
“I am really grateful for the commitment and passion of our partners and with our continued investment in partner pay, we are delighted to be in a position to offer a 2% partnership bonus. We are on track to make further progress this year.”
