John Lewis Partnership is set to report another loss this week at its half-year results, its first under the helm of new chief executive Nish Kankiwala.
However, losses are expected to come in lower than the £99m shortfall posted a year previously, according to The Mail on Sunday.
It is not unusual for John Lewis to make a loss in its first half – it has in three out of the last four years – as it does not cover the critical Christmas trading period. However, Kankiwala is expected to sound caution about the trading outlook.
John Lewis Partnership, which owns both the eponymous department store and Waitrose, posted an eye-watering £234m loss in its last financial year.
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Chair Dame Sharon White faced a confidence vote in May, which she narrowly won.
It emerged last week that Waitrose workers could lose their jobs if they don’t accept flexible hours, as the upmarket grocer seeks to boost productivity and keep costs down.
Waitrose retail director Tina Mitchell said in a staff video seen by the Financial Times that some partners may need to make “sacrifices and compromises” and warned that streamlining operations “may result in some partners leaving the business”.
“Unless we change how we work, there’s a real danger that the partnership won’t exist in the form that we want it to in the future,” she said.
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