Coronavirus ravages UK high street as John Lewis stores close
The John Lewis Partnership will temporarily close all of its 50 John Lewis stores at close of business on Monday due to the impact of coronavirus.
Johnlewis.com will continue to operate as normal, alongside Waitrose stores and waitrose.com. This will be the first time in the 155-year history of the business that it will not open its doors for customers.
“While it is with a heavy heart that we temporarily close our John Lewis shops, our partners will, where possible, be taking on important roles in supporting their fellow partners, providing critical services in Waitrose shops and ensuring our customers can get what they need through johnlewis.com, which is seeing extremely strong demand,” said Chairman Sharon White.
She added that the Partnership has faced many difficult periods over the years, including two world wars and the 2008 financial crisis.
“On every occasion, thanks to our customers and partners, and the long standing relationships with our suppliers and stakeholders, we have emerged stronger. We all need to continue to support eachother and our strength and resilience will be tested. But they will not be broken,” she concluded.
Further details here.
Also closing
Yesterday, Arcadia, which owns Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge, said it had taken the “difficult decision” to close its more than 500 stores until further notice.
Also this week, Harrods announced it was pulling its famous Knightsbridge store from action. Well, sort of… Its Food Hall will remain open as will its pharmacy.
In a statement, Harrods said: “We continued to trade and serve our customers during World War II, and only closed for a short period of time after the car bomb attack of the 1980s. Harrods is a symbol of resilience in a changing and often uncertain world, and we know that our values will ensure that we as a business come through this next chapter.”
