Facelift fails to halt John Lewis slump

SALES at the John Lewis Partnership fell last week as it unveiled a multi-million-pound rebrand.

The group, which owns the department store John Lewis and supermarket Waitrose, said sales were down 3.8pc in the week to September 8. Waitrose suffered a 3.7pc drop in the period and John Lewis a 4pc fall.

The group has just launched its biggest facelift in its 154-year history, thought to have cost up to £5m and featuring a TV ad with children singing Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody.