Revolutionary Ideas

It wasn’t long before Spedan became uneasy that he, his brother and his father were receiving more income from the family business than all their employees put together. After a riding accident forced him to have two operations and a long period of recovery, he thought deeply about his own future and that of the business. He was eager to share his profits with his staff and to redistribute money which was being kept in reserve.

In order to do this, Spedan decided he would have to make the business into a limited liability company, distributing the profits to the employees in the form of shares in proportion to their pay. His father’s reaction to this suggestion – and to his inevitable smaller share of the retained profits – was somewhat negative.

The Experiment

It was in 1914 that John Lewis Senior handed over the entire managerial control of the Peter Jones shop to Spedan, who became the shop’s chairman and its nominal managing director. He was then free to start putting his forward-thinking ideas into practice. However, his father made him continue to work until 5pm at the Oxford Street shop, and the Peter Jones business was doing badly.

Spedan’s first move was to shorten the working day by an hour and to start a departmental system of commission. He also set up the staff committees in which elected representatives held regular meetings with him in the absence of their managers. This system is still in operation.

Spedan had a serious disagreement with his father in 1916 that was to shape the future of the John Lewis Partnership. He withdrew from active participation in the Oxford Street shop and swapped his quarter-share of the business for his father’s controlling holding in the capital of Peter Jones Limited.

Over the next few years he made further changes at Peter Jones, giving the staff a third week’s holiday, taking on unusually well educated people for management posts, and starting The Gazette (our internal news publication which is still published in the Partnership today).

In 1919 he set up a staff council (the forerunner of today’s Partnership, Divisional and Branch Councils). His employee-ownership and democratic business model ideas were starting to flourish and Peter Jones was commercially, all the better for it.

Family & Business

Spedan Lewis married Sarah Beatrice Mary Hunter in 1923. She was one of five women graduates recruited as buyers the previous year and became deputy chairman of the Partnership after their marriage. They had three children: John, who sadly died as a child, Jill (1927-68) and Edward (1929-2008).

Spedan’s mother died in 1924 and the long disagreement between him and his father was made up. In 1926, Oswald gave his brother his share in the Oxford Street shop, and control of both stores passed to Spedan, although his father was still very much involved with the day-to-day running of the business. Spedan immediately started to apply his ‘Partnership’ ideals to the Oxford Street shop as well, and bought the Odney Club at Cookham, Berkshire, in the same year (one of 5 Partnership hotels that we still enjoy today).

John Lewis Senior died in 1928, aged 92, leaving Spedan sole owner of both stores. He expanded his shop still further down Oxford Street. He also converted the John Lewis firm into a public company – John Lewis and Company Limited – creating capital for expansion.

The Partnership is Born

On 18 April 1929 Spedan Lewis signed the First Trust Settlement, transferring his own shares in John Lewis Ltd, Peter Jones Ltd and the Odney Estate to a board of trustees on behalf of the Partners. He also created the John Lewis Partnership Limited.

In return he would receive bonds worth £1 million over the following 30 years. He retained complete practical control but took no more income from the business.

Twenty-one years later, on 26 April 1950, Spedan signed the Second Trust Settlement, effectively ‘giving’ the Partnership to the people who work in it. By this act he transferred all his remaining shares and his ultimate control to the trustees. The John Lewis Partnership expanded during the remainder of the 20th century into the business we know today.

Waitrose Joins the Partnership

The Partnership bought Waitrose Ltd in October 1937. At the time it was a London-based family business with 10 grocery and provisions shops employing 164 staff. Wallace Wyndham Waite, who had opened his first shop with Arthur Rose and David Taylor in 1904, was still in charge.

The three men had started trading in Acton, west London. Their original shop soon expanded, and reopened in much larger premises in 1908, selling everything from fish to flowers. By 1920 there were more than 20 Waitrose shops throughout London and the Home Counties, but many shops had closed by 1930 after a decade of more difficult trading conditions.

The Partnership was attracted to Waitrose, said Spedan Lewis, by its ‘high reputation not only for the quality of its goods but also for the way in which it has been built up… It is no secret that many provision shops… have owed a good deal of their success to the bribing of servants of their customers. Messrs Waitrose Limited have never used any such methods.’

We All Own It

From a small drapers shop on Oxford Street to truly revolutionary ideas, the John Lewis Partnership today stands as a profound testament to the foresight of Spedan Lewis and his belief that a better way of doing business could be found. One that benefits its Partners, customers, suppliers and the world as a whole.

In an ever-changing 21st-century retail landscape, this enduring model of ownership remains our deepest strength. It is a structure where every individual is a Partner, with a shared stake in the collective future. This spirit, forged through a history of overcoming challenges, ensures that the Partnership, gifted by its founder to the people who work in it, remains strong, resilient, and ready to face the future and is anchored in unwavering conviction of our unique purpose – Working in Partnership for a Happier World.

The national expansion will bring similar transformations to the Bluewater, Solihull, and Cambridge stores before the end of 2025. Upon completion, John Lewis will offer over 540 beauty counters, almost 70 dedicated treatment rooms, and more than 400 distinct beauty services nationwide.

Investing in customers

These announcements are key moments in a year of significant investment, focused on enhancing the customer experience. The strategy is strengthening the John Lewis offering through:

• A landmark £800m investment in stores: A nationwide programme is underway that will see every John Lewis store receive some level of investment. Upgrades will include regenerating spaces to develop best-in-class beauty halls, revitalised retail floors, and new casual dining options.
• Curating the UK’s best brands: In addition to Topshop, John Lewis is solidifying its position as a style destination. This season will see the launch of new fashion brands including By Malene Birger, Akyn as well as Max Mara Group brands MM and Marella. This is alongside exclusive high-profile designer collaborations with celebrated talent like Rejina Pyo for womenswear and, in a significant move for menswear, the first collaboration in over a decade with LABRUM London. In Home, a major exclusive partnership with Deliciously Ella will launch alongside iconic brands like Pottery Barn.
• Innovating the customer experience: Responding to a 40% growth in beauty, the newly opened Liverpool Beauty Hall is the first of six to be completed this year, moving beyond the counter-led model to focus on discovery with the arrival of global power-brands like Fenty Beauty and Byredo. For home, the new ‘The Emporium’ shop-in-shop concept is launching at Bluewater to expand the gifting range with brands including The Conran Shop.

Award winning customer service: This renewed focus on the customer experience is already resonating, with John Lewis recently being named best UK retailer by both the UK Customer Service Institute and Which?

Bigger and better beauty halls

Our flagship John Lewis store on Oxford Street, as well as stores in High Wycombe and Cheadle, are the first to benefit from significant investment with brand new and bigger Beauty Halls.

Beyond beauty, Oxford Street has had significant improvements to all corners of its six floors including home, tech, jewellery, large electricals, and more.

John Lewis is the UK’s leading quality beauty retailer, thanks to our strong presence both in stores and online, along with our commitment to offering expert advice from our team of beauty professionals.

John Lewis beauty sales in the first half of this year were up almost 7% on the same time last year.

Jamie Oliver cookery school

We’re also announcing today a partnership with Britain’s best known chef Jamie Oliver, to bring his new flagship Cookery School and Cafe to John Lewis Oxford Street in spring 2025.

Spanning over 4,600 sq ft, the school will have two classrooms hosting over 40 lessons as well as a 50-seat cafe. As part of his mission to teach children to cook, Jamie will continue to provide free cookery lessons for children during the school holidays.

The opening of Waterstones books in John Lewis Oxford Street earlier this month forms part of an £800m injection in John Lewis’ offer to customers over four years.

“The buzz is back in John Lewis and we’re giving our customers even more reasons to shop in our brilliant stores. We’re backing ourselves with significant investment to ensure customers get the exceptional quality, outstanding service, and competitive prices they love about our unique brand.”

Peter Ruis, Executive Director for John Lewis

“I’m delighted to partner with John Lewis to bring our unique Cookery School to life in a flagship location in Central London. This is the next step in growing the footprint of the Jamie Oliver Cookery School across the UK and internationally and central to making Jamie’s stripped back, chef-inspired food accessible to everyone.”

Kevin Styles, Jamie Oliver Group CEO

“John Lewis’ continued investment in Oxford Street and the West End shows that London is a leading location for beauty and fashion retail.

The 2025 opening of the new Jamie Oliver Cookery School and the recent opening of Waterstones will bring an exciting new element to the John Lewis Oxford Street flagship store, improving the shopping and leisure experience for Londoners and tourists alike.

This is exactly the kind of investment we like to see as we start the project of regenerating Oxford Street and continue building a better and more prosperous London for everyone.”

Howard Dawber, Deputy Mayor for Business and Growth

John Lewis Oxford Street

Today saw the culmination of a £6.5m upgrade of our Oxford Street store to make it a shopping destination for Londoners and tourists visiting one of the world’s most famous streets. The store celebrates its 160 year anniversary with:

• A new, bigger Beauty Hall – this now has 41 beauty counters and shop-in-shop concepts, a 24% increase in footprint, and 175 beauty brands, an increase of 15%. Brands new to the store include The Inkey List, Mac, Skin+Me, Nudestix, and The Ordinary. The revitalisation of the Beauty Hall provides customers with the latest and best counters and services from all of our brands. Customers will also be able to access a huge range of services across beauty, skincare and haircare.

• Fragrance – now has its own beautiful dedicated space, with Kilian, Parfum de Marly, and Loewe making their John Lewis Oxford Street debut.

• A new world of haircare – brands including Dyson, Shark, GHD, will join the likes of Wella Professional, Aveda, and Larry King in the fresh new haircare world discovery area. There are now 35% more hair-related products for sale, with 50% more brands introduced as part of the transformation.

• New Jewellery brands – in a new home on the first floor along with new piercing and jewellery welding services from Tish Lyon, this fresh and elevated part of the store is home to 46 brands. New brands launched are Dinny Hall, Enamel Copenhagen, Sarah Alexander, Hoxton London and Koijis Vintage Jewellery.

• New brands for home – brought in new brands including Ruggable and MADE.com. Existing brands have been elevated, with room sets featuring strongly alongside better navigation and style segmentation.

• Technology and Large Appliances – Further departments will be opened across our six floors. This follows the recent openings of a Waterstones bookshop and a new rooftop restaurant and bar, 1864.

Our Oxford Street store will continue to be a test bed for transformative improvements and changes which will then roll out to the wider portfolio of shops.

Almost 70 customer events will be held between 25-27 October to celebrate the new look Beauty Halls and showcase the improvements across the stores.

Izaac’s story

Izaac applied to collaborate with the John Lewis Partnership and creative agency Saatchi & Saatchi, and their talented work was championed by the charity Become.

They worked with the John Lewis in-house design team and creative partners at Saatchi & Saatchi to develop their unique designs, including in a one-on-one workshop.

“Turning my care records into artwork helped me regain authorship over information concealed from me. Inspired by my time in the woods, the branches become my protectors, letting me process and redact information at my own pace.

“As a fine art student, this is an incredible opportunity to help my Art work gain visibility. Made by care is helping me develop my connections and gain experience in the art world – seeing how products are made, working with designers and creatives.”

Izaac, Designer and Fine Art Student

The new gifting range

The gifting range is a must-have choice for presents with a purpose this Christmas and includes three unisex graphic T-shirts (£15), ideal for layering in the winter; as well as a stylish sweatshirt (£30); two silk scarves (£25) – the accessory of AW24 – and a printed statement mug (£6). These items are available online from 23rd October and in John Lewis stores from the 28th October.

The range also includes two printed tote bags (£10) made of recycled bottles, which are available online and in Waitrose stores.

Profits from each product sold will be donated to the Building Happier Futures fund, which is part of the John Lewis Partnership Foundation. All donations will contribute to support our work with Action for Children, Home Start and Who Cares? Scotland building supportive communities for care experienced people, and helping families and carers create happy and secure homes.

The collaborative design-led project will see more products launched in 2025 and beyond, as part of the Partnerships long-term commitment to support Care Experienced young people through the Building Happier Futures programme.

“This collection is beautiful, bringing together unique designs that tell a deeply personal story. It’s exciting to see how this range can be a vehicle for change, and we’re thrilled to offer our customers pieces that are not only beautiful but also champion the talents of designers who are care experienced.”

Rosie Hanley, Director of Brand for John Lewis

“Izaac’s designs tell a unique and personal story. Our customers aren’t just buying a beautifully designed product; they’re investing in a piece that highlights a real societal issue, with the potential to inspire real change. It’s so exciting to see how the Made By Care brand is developing and how this is making a meaningful difference to more lives through the Building Happier Futures programme.”

Ceira Thom, Head of Learning at the John Lewis Partnership