John Lewis is to open two new food concessions as part of a move to significantly develop its food offer.
The retailer has joined forces with Hotel Chocolat and Joe & The Juice to open separate outlets in two of its shops. Hotel Chocolat‘s cocoa bar café concept will open in Edinburgh in early 2014 followed by York when its flexible format shop opens early next year, while Joe & The Juice will open in Solihull.
Joe & The Juice opened its first UK outlet in 2009 and now has four cafes in London. The John Lewis tie-up in Solihull will be its first UK site outside of London.
The Hotel Chocolat cocoa bar café will make small-batch chocolates on the premises using cocoa beans from Hotel Chocolat‘s Saint Lucia estate and the John Lewis Edinburgh branch will be the first time Hotel Chocolat has opened a catering concession with a major high street retailer.
The move is part of John Lewis‘s ongoing strategy to create inspiring environments for customers in its physical shops. Last year it opened four in-shop Kuoni concessions, in 2011 it announced the creation of Beauty Retreats in four of its branches, and in June this year it opened Little Waitrose in its Watford department store.
Andrew Murphy, retail director at John Lewis, said: “We want to create more compelling reasons than ever for customers to visit our shops, and partnering with two such inspiring brands will be a real draw. The concessions will sit alongside our existing Place to Eat restaurants, complementing them but offering something a little different from the everyday.”
Angus Thirlwell, co-founder and CEO at Hotel Chocolat, said: “This new venture is exciting for both our brands and we look forward to working together to bring a new and compelling shopping experience to our customers.
