The John Lewis Partnership (JLP), parent company of Waitrose and John Lewis, has reported that its profit before tax and exceptional items has increased threefold, rising to £126m ($163.12m) from £42m during the fiscal year 2024/2025.
The company’s profit before tax rose 73%, climbing from £56m to £97m.
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Sales escalated to £12.8bn, a 3% increase compared to £12.4bn in the previous fiscal year.
Operating profit margin improved by 0.9 percentage points, reaching 2%, as the retail company’s focus on productivity yielded tangible results.
Despite these gains, JLP has chosen to re-invest in the business rather than distribute a bonus in 2025. It allocated an additional £114m to partners’ pay and earmarked up to £600m for ongoing business transformation.
The company said in a statement: “As employee-owners, we have a shared responsibility to ensure the partnership is sustainable over the long term. We’ve consistently said that at this point in our transformation, this is best served by investing in our retail businesses and in partners’ base pay. So after careful consideration, we do not believe it would be right to award a partnership bonus this year. We are increasing overall pay by £114m in 2025, building on the £116m increase in 2024.”
Customer engagement also saw positive trends, with a 2% rise in the number of shoppers patronising JLP’s brands. Loyalty programmes expanded, with My Waitrose growing 7% to reach 4.6 million active members and My John Lewis increasing 11% to 3.7 million members.
JLP invested one-third more into the business in the fiscal year 2024/25 compared to the previous year ,and plans to accelerate its transformation strategy in the upcoming year, supported by a self-funded investment of £600m.
This investment will focus on enhancing customer experience through store renovations, technological advancements and supply chain improvements.
During the fiscal year, Waitrose experienced a 4.4% growth in sales to £8bn and a volume increase of 2.6%.
Waitrose’s adjusted operating profit soared by £122m to £227m, doubling the operating margin year-on-year to 3%.
John Lewis also maintained steady sales at £4.8bn and outperformed market expectations, gaining momentum throughout the year. Its adjusted operating profit reached £45m.
John Lewis Partnership chair Jason Tarry stated: “These are solid results, which show that our customers are responding well to our investments in quality products, value and service. We have made good progress with much more still to do.
“Looking forward, I see significant opportunity for growth from both our Waitrose and John Lewis brands. Our focus will be on enhancing what makes these brands truly special for our customers. This will involve considerable catch-up investment in our stores and supply chain, underpinned by a strong focus on the core elements of great retail, delivered by our brilliant partners.
JLP anticipates that microeconomic challenges will continue. With strong cash generation and liquidity, it is poised to invest £600m in the next fiscal year to further refine its customer offerings.
The company projects an increase in profitability for the fiscal year 2025/26.
