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John Lewis axes third of top jobs in restructuring | John Lewis axes third of top jobs in restructuring |
(32 minutes later) | |
A third of senior management jobs will be axed at the John Lewis Partnership as the company streamlines its structure from February next year. | |
The partnership is merging the managements of its High Street department stores and Waitrose grocery chain into a single team. | |
John Lewis has been struggling in a tough retail climate. | |
The restructuring aims to save £100m, through the loss of about 75 of its current 225 senior head office roles. | |
"These changes will be difficult for some of our Partners and we will implement as carefully and sensitively as we can," said chairman Sir Charlie Mayfield. | |
John Lewis employees, including both management and shop floor staff, are known as "partners" due to the company's profit-sharing model. | |
There would be "little or no disruption" for customers, he said, but the restructuring would create a more unified leadership team and cost structure. | |
Last month, the retailer reported a half-year loss for the first time in its history amidst a difficult UK retail environment. | |
"The lesson of the last two years is that we need more innovation, faster decision-making and bolder steps to align our operating model with our strategy," the chairman said. | |
The company said of the customers that accounted for its greatest sales, eight out of 10 of them shopped at both its department stores and at Waitrose. |