John Lewis has become the latest retailer to partner with AI-powered payments network Klarna to offer customers a Buy Now Pay Later solution.
Andy Piggott, director of credit and banking at John Lewis Money, said: “We’re committed to making it easier for customers to manage their budgets with a range of flexible and secure ways to pay.
“Klarna has become a go-to payment choice for everything from beauty and fashion through to homewear and electronics – we hope that the introduction of Klarna will make John Lewis even more accessible and help attract a new customer that may not have traditionally shopped with us.”
This follows the high street giant reintroducing its loan service, as part of a new partnership with Zopa Bank.
A company profile in the first UK 360° report looks at how John Lewis is investing £542mn on modernising technology, refreshing its shops and simplifying the way that it works.
In recent years, John Lewis has invested heavily in omnichannel retailing and on the retail experience. In its latest full-year, 53% of its customers bought through digital channels, including its mobile app. The retailer has reduced store numbers to 34 – down from the 51 stores it had before the Covid-19 pandemic – while increasing the number of collection points to 13,000 by including branches of sister supermarket Waitrose.
In its latest financial year, to 27 January 2024, its parent company John Lewis Partnership reported pre-tax profits of £56mn. That represented a return to profit from a loss of £234mn in the previous year on sales of £12.4bn (+1%). At the John Lewis department store business alone, sales reached £4.8bn (-4%).
In its full year strategy update, the John Lewis Partnership said it would invest £542mn on modernising technology, refreshing its shops and simplifying the way that it works. At John Lewis, it will invest in new brands – both its own and third-party brands – as well as in customer service technology, value and the online experience. That online investment is set to see improvements to navigation and more personalised product recommendations.
JLP is also investing in staff training and development in order to offer “a differentiated experience for customers.”
Commenting on its full year results, Sharon White, chairman of JLP, said: “Our improved performance has been supported by our customers’ love for both brands, with more people choosing to shop with us than ever before, and our Partners’ commitment to delivering excellent customer service. This year, we will unashamedly focus on investing back into our retail businesses for our customers, including opening new Waitrose shops and continuing to modernise our brand offering in John Lewis, while prioritising pay for our Partners.”
John Lewis joins Argos, Asos, Marks & Spencer, Schuh, Screwfix and Tesco in the first UK 360° report.
The full report offers a briefing on the UK market as a whole, how shoppers buy and want to buy, the retailers, brands and marketplaces that are succeeding in this market, and the services that the most successful provide to their customers.
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