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John Lewis chairwoman Sharon White has assured that employees’ ownership of the John Lewis Partnership will “remain a constant”, following reports that the group was considering selling a minority ownership stake.
It comes as reports emerged earlier this week that the employee-owned group could dilute its 100% staff ownership structure in a bid to raise investment after the business faced a year of heavy losses.
According to The Sunday Times, White was said to be in the early stages of exploring a proposal to change its partnership structure in a bid to raise between £1bn and £2bn of new investment.
The report said the company would only consider selling a minority stake in the business however, and that its priority would be to maintain majority employee ownership.
The company has been 100% owned by its employees for more than 70 years, after it was put into a trust in 1950 by John Spedan Lewis, son of the group’s founder.
In a newly released statement, White said she was “responsible for ensuring the partnership model not only survives, but thrives for another 75 years”.
She assured customers and employees that the partnership would “continue to evolve and change shape” but what would remain a constant is “our ownership of the business”.
She said: “The strength of our brands – John Lewis and Waitrose – isn’t an accident of being a partnership. It is because we are a partnership. It is the reason that brilliant customer service, quality, value and sustainability are at the heart of everything we do.
“Our partners (we don’t call ourselves employees) give more because we own the business, and have a say in how it is run; as we also operate as a democracy. Our customers trust us because they know when they shop with us that they are getting independent, impartial and expert advice from partners who own the business.”
She added: “Being a partnership is what got us through the pandemic. It’s what’s getting us through the biggest cost of living crisis in generations. And I’m hugely grateful to our customers, for staying loyal to us. I do not take that for granted.
“We have always been open to new partnerships with investors or like minded companies to support our growth. A recent example is the partnership with abrdn, the investment fund, who are investing in our residential property business, which will eventually provide 10,000 rental homes for communities.”
She continued: “In seeking what’s best for our business and our partners, if we were to consider working with others that had implications for how we’re set up, we’d of course discuss it with our partners first.
“As chairman, I have the responsibility – and the privilege – of ensuring everything we do is in the best interest of the partnership. The partnership will continue to evolve and change shape, as it has since its creation. What will remain a constant is our ownership of the business.”
