What: John Lewis is investing millions in technology and restructuring to streamline processes and improve customer service across its stores.

Why it is important: The restructuring efforts, while potentially disruptive in the short term, aim to position the company for long-term success and profitability.

John Lewis is embarking on a multi-million-pound investment program aimed at streamlining processes, implementing new technology, and restructuring staff to enhance customer service across its stores. This initiative includes a GBP 5 million investment in digital headsets to improve communication and reduce wait times, GBP 1 million for mobile printers to replace missing shelf labels, and the distribution of devices to 5,000 staff members for mobile payments on the shop floor. The company is also adapting staff roles and hours to ensure more employees can work on the shop floor during peak periods. However, this restructuring could lead to around 150 job redundancies. These changes follow similar measures implemented at Waitrose earlier in the year and are part of John Lewis's broader strategy to simplify operations and improve customer experience.

This investment comes at a crucial time for John Lewis, which recently returned to profit after several years of losses. The company has been grappling with rising costs due to inflation, which has impacted its ambitious transformation plan. Despite these challenges, John Lewis remains committed to its physical stores, noting that predictions of the high street's demise are "overstated." The retailer has seen a decrease in online sales from 81% during the pandemic to 57% in the past year, with in-store visits increasing by 8%. The company's focus on technology and in-store experience aligns with its goal of becoming a "brilliant retailer" and marks a shift away from previous diversification efforts into areas like financial services and build-to-rent projects. This renewed emphasis on core retail operations reflects John Lewis's strategy to adapt to changing consumer behaviours and maintain its position in the competitive UK retail market.

John Lewis plans multimillion pound tech investment to boost in-store customer service