Waitrose sales up but John Lewis sales slide

The John Lewis Partnership today reported interim results of sales 3.5%, but this comprised Waitrose sales up 7.4%, offset by sales at John Lewis down 2.9%.

Overall profit at John Lewis was down nearly 20% to £86.3 million.

With the jump in sales at Waitrose it shows it has clearly been able to compete well against its rivals, including the budget chains such as Lidl and Aldi, particulalry with its Essentials range of value priced products.

At the top end there’s the ‘Seriously’ brand of indulgent food products and this will now be supported by the recent deal with Duchy Originals.

John Lewis has this week launched its Value range and they are trying to ensure their ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ message is better communicated.

The online business has performed well the fashion website recently relaunched, along with a ‘Click and Collect’ service in conjunction with Waitrose.

Chairman of John Lewis, Charlie Mayfield, said the expectation is for ‘the trading conditions for the remainder of 2009, and into 2010, to continue to be difficult’.

Greenbee.com, also part of the Partnership, offering financial, travel and leisure services, has seen sales in the first half of the year up 47% on the previous year. Work continues to improve the user experience on the Greenbee site and to improve the conversion rates to further boost sales.

As part of this, new offerings have been launched, including Wine Tours and Gourmet Breaks this month, done in conjunction with the Waitrose buying team.