John Lewis opens its 50th store today, the anchor of the £600m Westfield White City extension. Speaking ahead of the opening, Paula Nickolds, Managing Director of John Lewis has said that ‘the modern day department store is a place to shop, do and learn under one roof’. At the Westfield store the retailer will offer customers new things to do and learn every time they visit, including daily fashion style talks, cookery masterclasses and beauty treatments. In addition, inside John Lewis’s first ever ‘Discovery Room’ customers can learn a vast array of new skills from expert Partners such as how to perfectly light a room, how to make a house a smart home and hang a picture perfectly.
The first floor will be home to John Lewis’s first ‘Style Studio’, a 700 sq ft place where customers can enjoy a style consultation – from assistance with getting ready for a special event to a wardrobe refresh, in addition to two options which include make-up, beauty treatments and afternoon tea. John Lewis will also launch an app-based service enabling customers to keep in touch with their personal stylist and be alerted about products based on their personal preferences, find out when a new collection has arrived from their favourite brand, or if a product they love is going into price match.
Paula Nickolds, Managing Director of John Lewis said: “Retail is changing but today’s department shop is as relevant as it ever has been in responding to the needs of our customers. This shop demonstrates our latest thinking on how the department store can be a place in which you can shop, do and learn in a way you haven’t been able to before’. We’re bringing to West London a new level of personalised, curated shopping which until now has been the preserve of boutique shops.”
“This shop offers customers something different. You can get style advice for yourself or your home, learn a new skill, play with the latest smart home technology and so much more. It’s also a place where we can build a far more personal relationship with our customers – bringing together the very best of our service offer and our outstanding Partners,” she adds.
John Lewis has invested heavily in training to give its Partners the new skills needed for modern retailing. Every one of the shop’s 500 Partners has been sent to theatre training run by the National Theatre to help them really engage customers and provide outstanding customer service. Personal Stylists have been trained at the London College of Style and by renowned stylist and former Vogue Fashion Director, Lucinda Chambers, who taught them how to translate high fashion catwalk trends to the shop floor. The shop will stock over 150,000 products from over 1,000 brands.
