John Lewis Partnership
British employee-owned retail partnership operating John Lewis department stores, Waitrose supermarkets and related services.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
The John Lewis Partnership is a British employee-owned retail group whose principal businesses are John Lewis & Partners department stores and Waitrose supermarkets. Established as a legal partnership structure in 1929 by John Spedan Lewis, the organization places ownership in a trust for the benefit of its employees, who are known as Partners. The model gives employees a stake in the enterprise's long-term success and historically provided a common annual bonus linked to company profitability. The Partnership grew from two family retail businesses. John Lewis opened a drapery shop on London's Oxford Street in 1864, while the Peter Jones store in Sloane Square was acquired by John Lewis in 1906. Spedan Lewis, John Lewis's son, became closely involved in Peter Jones and developed a management philosophy based on sharing the gains, knowledge and power of the business with employees. His experiments included shorter working hours, improved staff conditions, employee representation and profit participation. In 1929 he transferred the shares of John Lewis and Peter Jones into trusteeship, creating the foundation of the modern Partnership. During the twentieth century, the group expanded through acquisitions and store development. It bought several regional department stores during the 1930s and acquired Waitrose in 1937, when the grocery chain had ten shops. A major 1940 acquisition of Selfridge Provincial Stores substantially increased the department-store estate. Many businesses retained their historic local names for decades, although most were later converted to the John Lewis name to support national marketing. Peter Jones remained an important exception. John Lewis & Partners serves customers through full-line department stores, smaller John Lewis at Home locations, airport and transport-based formats, online retail and associated services. Its range has included furniture, electrical goods, homewares, fashion, beauty, nursery products and other general merchandise. Waitrose provides food, grocery, fresh produce, prepared foods, wine and related services. The group has also operated financial services and, more recently, a build-to-rent operation. The Partnership is governed through a distinctive democratic structure. The chairman has overall responsibility for the business, while the Partnership Council is a directly elected body of Partners that represents employees and holds the chairman to account. The Council also elects representatives to the Partnership Board and trustees. The structure is intended to balance professional management with employee participation rather than treating the company as a conventional publicly traded retailer. The business has faced significant pressure from changing shopping habits, online competition, difficult consumer conditions and the COVID-19 pandemic. It recorded its first half-year operating loss in 2019, and sixteen loss-making John Lewis stores were closed during the pandemic. Profit-sharing has consequently varied substantially: the Partnership bonus was reduced in difficult years, was not paid in 2021, and returned in 2022. In 2024 Jason Tarry became chairman. The chief executive role, created in 2023, was subsequently removed in 2024, with Nish Kankiwala expected to complete his contract and leave in 2025. The group remains a private, employee-owned British retailer rather than a listed company.
History
John Lewis Partnership traces its origins to John Lewis's drapery shop, opened on Oxford Street in London in 1864. Lewis built the business around quality merchandise and modest mark-ups, later expanding into women's clothing, children's goods and furniture. His sons, John Spedan Lewis and Oswald Lewis, joined the business. In 1906 Lewis acquired a controlling interest in Peter Jones, the Sloane Square retailer. Spedan Lewis took control of Peter Jones in 1914 and began reshaping its employment practices. He introduced shorter working hours, improved staff accommodation and holidays, departmental commission arrangements, regular meetings and a staff newspaper. In 1919 a staff council was established. Spedan's central idea was that employees should share in the gains of the business, while capital should receive a limited return. He described the approach through the principles of sharing gain, knowledge and power. In 1929 Spedan executed a deed of settlement transferring the shares of John Lewis and Peter Jones to trustees for the benefit of employees. This created the formal basis of the John Lewis Partnership. A further settlement in 1950 reinforced the trust-based ownership structure. The Partnership's employee bonus became an important practical expression of this model, although its level has varied according to profitability and it has not been paid in every year. Expansion accelerated in the 1930s. The Partnership acquired regional retailers including Jessop & Son, Lance & Lance, Knight & Lee and Tyrrell & Green, while modernizing Peter Jones. In 1937 it acquired Waitrose, then a small chain of counter-service grocery shops. In 1940 it bought Selfridge Provincial Stores, adding sixteen stores and substantially broadening its geographical reach. World War II caused disruption and bombing damage, including the destruction of part of the Oxford Street John Lewis premises. The post-war decades brought further store investment and acquisitions. Heelas in Reading and Bainbridge in Newcastle upon Tyne were acquired in 1953. The rebuilt Oxford Street store reopened in 1960, and Barbara Hepworth's Winged Figure was installed there in 1963. Historic regional department-store names were progressively replaced by John Lewis branding from 2002, primarily to support national advertising; Peter Jones remained under its established name. The group later experimented with smaller John Lewis at Home stores, convenience formats and online retail, alongside its full-line department stores. It also developed operations in financial services and build-to-rent property. In 2012 and 2013 outsourced cleaners at John Lewis stores took industrial action over pay. The company encountered increasing structural pressure in the late 2010s, including online competition and weaker consumer demand. Its first half-year operating loss came in 2019. The pandemic intensified the pressure and led to the closure of sixteen loss-making John Lewis stores. Governance remains centered on the chairman, the Partnership Board, trustees and the elected Partnership Council. The Council represents Partners and has the authority to hold the chairman to account, including the power to remove the chairman. In 2023 the Partnership created a chief executive role for the first time, appointing Nish Kankiwala for day-to-day operations. Chairman Jason Tarry removed the role in 2024; Kankiwala was expected to complete his two-year contract and depart in March 2025. The Partnership therefore continues to combine centralized commercial management with employee trusteeship and representative governance.
- 2024
Jason Tarry becomes chairman
[1]Jason Tarry became chairman and later removed the chief executive role.
- 2023
First chief executive appointed
[1]The Partnership created a chief executive position and appointed Nish Kankiwala.
- 2020
Store closures during pandemic
[1]Sixteen loss-making John Lewis stores were closed during the COVID-19 period.
- 2019
First half-year operating loss
[1]The Partnership reported its first half-year operating loss.
- 2009
First John Lewis at Home store opens
[1]The first John Lewis at Home location opened in Poole.
- 2002
Regional stores begin John Lewis rebranding
[1]The company began converting stores with historic local names to the nationally recognized John Lewis identity.
- 1960
Oxford Street store rebuilt
[1]The rebuilt flagship John Lewis store on Oxford Street reopened.
- 1940
Selfridge Provincial Stores acquired
[1]The acquisition added sixteen regional department stores to the group.
- 1937
Waitrose acquired
[1]The Partnership acquired Waitrose, then operating ten grocery shops in London and nearby counties.
- 1929
Partnership settlement created
[1]Spedan Lewis transferred the ownership of John Lewis and Peter Jones into trusteeship for employees.
Products and positioning
Employee ownership, trusted quality, broad general merchandise and grocery selection, service-led retailing and long-term stakeholder participation.
Department-store retail
John Lewis & Partners department stores
The group's department-store division sells a broad range of general merchandise, including furniture, homewares, electrical goods, technology, fashion, beauty, nursery products and seasonal goods. Stores operate in city-centre and out-of-town locations, with the Oxford Street branch serving as the flagship. The division also offers online retail and has historically used smaller formats to extend coverage beyond full-line stores.
Home retail · 2009
John Lewis at Home
John Lewis at Home stores are smaller-format locations focused particularly on furniture, home furnishings, electrical goods and related household categories. The format was designed for areas without a nearby full-line department store and formed part of the group's effort to adapt its physical estate.
Supermarket and grocery retail · 1937
Waitrose
Waitrose is the Partnership's grocery business. It sells fresh food, groceries, prepared foods, beverages, wine and household products through supermarkets and online channels. The chain joined the Partnership in 1937 and became its second major consumer-facing retail brand.
Financial services
Financial services
The Partnership has operated financial-services activities associated with its retail brands. These services form a supplementary business area alongside department-store and grocery operations.
Property services
Build to rent
The Partnership has developed a build-to-rent operation as a non-retail business line, extending its activities into residential property and rental accommodation.
Brand decisions
2024
Removal of chief executive roleStrategyBackground
Following a change in chairmanship, the Partnership reassessed its senior-management structure.
Action taken
Jason Tarry eliminated the chief executive position.
Aftermath
Nish Kankiwala was expected to complete his contract and step down in March 2025.
2023
Chief executive role createdOtherBackground
The Partnership had traditionally concentrated executive responsibility in the chairman.
Action taken
It appointed Nish Kankiwala as its first chief executive, with responsibility for day-to-day operations delegated by the chairman.
Aftermath
The role was removed by chairman Jason Tarry in October 2024, with Kankiwala expected to leave in March 2025.
2002
National John Lewis branding strategyStrategyBackground
The group operated department stores under several historic local names, making national advertising less consistent.
Action taken
It began renaming most non-John Lewis department stores as John Lewis, while retaining the Peter Jones name.
Aftermath
The policy created a more unified national department-store identity.
1929
Transfer to employee trusteeshipStrategyBackground
Spedan Lewis wanted the benefits of the combined retail businesses to extend beyond shareholders and to include the people working in them.
Action taken
He placed the shares of John Lewis and Peter Jones into a trust structure for employees, establishing the Partnership model.
Aftermath
The arrangement created the ownership and governance foundation that continues to distinguish the company from listed retailers.
Recent events
John Lewis Partnership expands click-and-collect availability[3]
Reported:
The John Lewis Partnership expanded its click-and-collect service to its Channel Islands branches, making the option available across its entire store estate; customers can collect orders from John Lewis and Waitrose stores.
John Lewis Partnership announces three Waitrose store closures[4]
Reported:
John Lewis Partnership announced that three Waitrose stores—in Helensburgh, Four Oaks and Waterlooville—would close later in 2020 as part of an overhaul.
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