John Lewis commercial teams ordered back to office three days a week

John Lewis Partnership has mandated that staff in its commercial teams spend more than half their week in the office or on-site.

The department store chain has informed members in its buying and merchandising departments that they must work either in the office, in stores or with brands and suppliers three days a week from the start of July.

John Lewis, which is in the midst of a turnaround, said the new policy was about improving collaboration across the business and “creating an environment where teams can learn and develop”.

The business moved to a hybrid working model at the end of the Covid-19 lockdowns, encouraging staff to schedule their office days as they deem necessary.

A John Lewis spokesperson told Retail Gazette: “Flexible working is an important part of our offer; everyone in our business can request to work flexibly, and most central office Partners have hybrid working arrangements in place.

“A collaborative culture is critical to help create the best product ranges and store environment for customers, and we’re taking steps to encourage team members to spend time together in our offices and stores, or meeting brands and suppliers – and balancing this with working remotely.

“We’ve also recruited around 50 new team members to help spearhead our range development and store modernisation – and their training and development, together with embedding a collaborative culture, is vital to set us up for success.”

The retailer relocated its head office last year, downsizing from the 220,000sq ft space at Victoria to a new 108,000sq ft site in Pimlico.

John Lewis is not the only retailer to pull back on its hybrid working policy, with Boots and JD Sports both ordering employees to return to the office five days a week last year.

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