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<\/div>\nAs Dame Sharon White prepares to leave John Lewis Partnership, she can\u2019t exactly say \u2018job well done\u2019. It\u2019s more like \u2018job half done\u2019, with no real promise that the end goal will ever be reached.<\/span><\/p>\n In fact, only a month ago, the JLP chair revealed that her big five-year plan that she promised would deliver \u00a3400m a year in profits at the department store and grocery group, would be delayed by two years.<\/span><\/p>\n Meanwhile, the losses continue to rack up. At JLP\u2019s recent half years, she had manage to narrow losses by a measly 14%, meaning that the group was in the red to the tune of almost \u00a360m.<\/span><\/p>\n If the aim is \u00a3400m in profit, that seems a long way off.<\/span><\/p>\n Of course, White has had a difficult run since she was hired as chair of John Lewis back in 2019, with a global pandemic and a cost-of-living crisis to contend with.<\/span><\/p>\n But she\u2019s also had some things go in her favour too. The demise of rival Debenhams, which operated close to 170 stores across the UK, should have given John Lewis an open goal.<\/span><\/p>\n The collapsed department store turned over more than \u00a32bn in sales. John Lewis should have hoovered up some of this but very little of that custom appears to have gone its way.<\/span><\/p>\n Instead, M&S and Next, both of which have adopted more of a department store offer of late, adding beauty and more third parties to their mix, seem to be making gains.<\/span><\/p>\n Retail expert Jonathan De Mello, CEO of JDM Retail, says her departure comes as no surprise. \u201c<\/span>Under her stewardship JLP has been mostly loss making, and though the business has had to contend with both Covid and the cost-of-living crisis in that time, peers such as M&S have not experienced the same level of decline.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Although White was unafraid to make some tough calls, such as closing 16 stores back in 2021, and has had some successes, such as the launch of John Lewis value range Anyday, her grand plan seemed confused and the lack of retail knowledge at the top was glaringly obvious.<\/span><\/p>\n The fact that White, a civil servant by trade that had previously led Ofcom, had no retail experience in one of the toughest markets the industry has ever seen has hurt the business.<\/span><\/p>\n And when senior retailers in her team \u2013 people like John Lewis boss Paula Nickolds and ex-Waitrose boss Rob Collins who held decades of experience at the business \u2013 left not long after her arrival, she was left with a<\/span> gaping knowledge vacuum at the top.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s notable that many of the big issues<\/span> that JLP has been hit with in recent years, be it a lack of availability in Waitrose or making sure its products are competitive in terms of price across both retail brands, are very-much retail problems.<\/span><\/p>\n Her grand plan has faced much criticism, particularly its move outside of retail, such as its foray into housing.<\/span><\/p>\n In fact, White expects that 40% of JLP profits will come from non-retail activities over the next decade.<\/span><\/p>\n However, <\/span>the financial viability of these schemes has been questioned after it emerged that one of the three housing schemes the business has in the works, the construction of more than 400 flats above a Waitrose store in West Ealing, could <\/span>cost the company far more than its worth on paper.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Planning documents have revealed the development could result in a negative return of \u00a357m.<\/span><\/p>\n De Mello says: <\/span>\u201cMuch of the issues JLP face are of their own making \u2013 lack of direction at Waitrose, changes mooted to their unique partnership model, and an aspiration to become a property developer to name a few \u2013 and ultimately Dame Sharon is responsible for these.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n As Dello says, the mere suggestion of changing the employee-owned structure of the partnership was a big strategic misstep.<\/span><\/p>\n The move, which has since been shelved, might have been well-intentioned, with the aim of raising more cash to invest in its transformation, however to dilute the partnership showed a spectacular lack of understanding of what made John Lewis special, to customers and staff alike.<\/span><\/p>\n The move received widespread condemnation.<\/span><\/p>\n Former John Lewis boss and now Mayor of West Midlands Andy Street said abandoning the partnership model would be a tragedy for the business while Mary Portas said the retailer had \u201clet go of its soul\u201d.<\/p>\n Sign up\u00a0here\u00a0to g<\/span>et the latest news straight into your inbox each morning<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n GlobalData Retail managing director Neil Saunders terms the move \u201cill advised\u201d and says it hurt the morale of partners.<\/span><\/p>\n That is a big problem. JLP\u2019s partners are the lifeblood of the organisation and the reason so many shoppers visit its stores. <\/span><\/p>\n They understand that they may pay slightly more at its brands but the service and advice they get is second to none.<\/span><\/p>\n After years of redundancies, no annual bonuses, and the suggestion of diluting the partnership, JLP staff are demoralised and certainly not geed up to undergo a wide-sweeping transformation.<\/span><\/p>\n The fact that White<\/span> narrowly survived a crunch vote earlier this year<\/span> when the partnership council, made up of more than 60 partners, said it did not have confidence in the business\u2019 performance under her leadership \u2013 although they did back her future strategy \u2013 speaks volumes.<\/span><\/p>\n White leaves a battered and bruised John Lewis Partnership, which despite many changes \u2013 notably the thousands of jobs axed \u2013 is no better off from a financial point of view that when she joined and appears somewhat rudderless.<\/span><\/p>\n The fact that White intends to stay on until February 2025 suggests she will continue pursuing her turnaround plan \u2013 though the two-year delay revealed earlier this year means she personally may not see it through.<\/span><\/p>\n However, De Mello believes the business should call time on her plan.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOne can only hope that whoever replaces her focuses on getting back to basics, with good retailing once again at the core of everything JLP does and stands for. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe business very much can turn things around, which \u2013 sadly for Dame Sharon \u2013 will mean scrapping a number of the ideas she and her team have been trying to enact over the past few years.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n One thing is for sure, action is needed for John Lewis to course correct \u2013 and recapture what makes it special.<\/p>\nSlow progress of a much-criticised plan<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nWhat next for John Lewis Partnership?<\/span><\/h3>\n