John Lewis announces new head of department store firm to kickstart turnaround
The John Lewis Partnership has confirmed a new head of its department store business
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John Lewis has confirmed it has hired former director Peter Ruis to head up the department store business to kickstart the retail division's turnaround.
The ex-chief executive of Jigsaw will become the executive director of the John Lewis business from the beginning of next week.
Mr Ruis worked for the John Lewis Partnership between 2005 and 2013 in various positions, including as a buying and brand director.
In the past, he has also served as the managing director at Anthropologie and the chief of Indigo, a book retailer in Canada.
Mr Ruis is returning to work for JLP
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In his new role, Mr Ruis will be charged with reversing the firm’s retail woes after it posted another loss in the first half of the latest financial year.
On his new role, he said: “It’s a great privilege to return to the John Lewis Partnership after 10 years.
“The John Lewis brand is iconic, loved and trusted by millions of customers across the UK and I’m excited to lead the next phase of the transformation.”
While John Lewis Partnership losses narrowed last quarter, John Lewis sales were down two per cent at £2billion. Losses before tax and exceptional items were £57.3million, a 14 per cent improvement on last year.
The department store cited that big ticket spending was hit but fashion and beauty sales jumped by three and two per cent, respectively.
Nish Kankiwala, chief executive officer of the John Lewis Partnership, said: “It’s fantastic to welcome Peter back to the partnership.
“He has a deep understanding of customers, brands and product from his 30-year career spanning a variety of major high street and online retailers.
“He also brings a clear and proven passion for the John Lewis brand and the Partnership model, and I have no doubt he will be integral to our future success.”
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PANaomi Simcock is stepping down as John Lewis’ executive director, having led the division on an interim basis for nearly a year. She will move into a new role as operations director for John Lewis, the partnership said.
Ms Simcock said: “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed stepping in to lead John Lewis and working with Partners across the business to deliver the quality, value and service our customers expect.
“I’m looking forward to continuing to be part of the John Lewis leadership team, supporting our partners and ensuring our department stores and supply chain continue to deliver for our customers.”
Ms Simcock stepped into the position of executive director in February last year following the departure of ex-boss Pippa Wicks in February 2023. Last year, the partnership’s chairwoman Sharon White confirmed her departure from the group in October 2023. She will stay until the end of her five-year term in February 2025.
The department store chain said predictions of the death of the high street have been “overstated”.
Writing in the retailer’s annual How We Shop, Live and Look report, JohnLewis commercial director Kathleen Mitchell said: “People want to come back to shops, especially on Saturdays.
“Evening shopping has been replaced by weekend shopping. Customers are eating, drinking, spending time in our shops and enjoying all that our stores have to offer – customer numbers are up eight per cent on last year.
“As many families have discovered, it can be quite a good value day out, with a little self-restraint.
“A general election and – we hope – an easing of the cost-of-living crisis are likely to dominate the headlines, but on the high street we expect to see our stores become even more compelling destinations.”