John Lewis online sales hit one billion pounds

Department store John Lewis’ annual online sales has passed the 1 billion pounds mark, a year ahead of the retailer’s forecast, as the chain launches a new multi-million pound web platform. The multichannel retailer had estimated reaching its 52-week

rolling basis sales target of 1 billion pounds in 2014; however the retailer is saying the success of reaching the milestone early is down to its investment in its online operations becoming more “customer-focused”.

Mark Lewis, who joined the retailer as its first online director earlier this year, said: “Passing the 1 billion pounds milestone almost an entire year ahead of schedule is a fantastic achievement for us, and a reflection of how central online shopping has become to our customers.

“We have a leading omnichannel strategy which our customers love, but to continue to deliver the service our customers want, we need a website which will serve us as well as the old one did, and maintain our position as a leading innovator in online retailing.”

John Lewis pushes forward with omnichannel strategy

The retailer has invested nearly 40 million pounds on its new site during the three-year project and states that its new website is “a foundation for future online growth” for the department store.

The new website features new functionality including an enhanced wish list function, search history, and more editorial content, and the retailer has also promised to continue to enhance its customer-focused functionality, an important aspect of the department stores strategy, and has included a prominent feedback form, which the retailer will use to prioritise issues and spot trends.

Additionally, John Lewis’ mobile site, which now drives more than 25 percent of traffic to Johnlewis.com, has been revamped to mirror the “creative design of the main site”, and the retailer plans to launch a new mobile app later this year to capitalise on its m-commerce sales.

Paul Coby, IT director at John Lewis, added: “With sales up over 40 percent for johnlewis.com in 2012, we are seeing an unprecedented pace of online growth and customers are making more demands on our website, than ever before.

“The billion-pound success of johnlewis.com is a reflection of our strategy to put the customer at the heart of our online operations. Early testing at every stage of the build, and inviting over 3 million customers to use our beta site before full launch, has resulted in what we believe will be an outstanding experience and journey for customers.”