Amazon tops list of Britain’s most reputable retailers

AMAZON has been named Britain’s most reputable retailer in a study, trumping the likes of Waitrose, John Lewis and Ikea.

Despite criticism over the amount of corporation tax it pays, and working conditions at its distribution centres, the ecommerce giant topped the poll of 50 well-respected companies based on 5,175 individual consumer ratings.

The Reputation Institute, which has been measuring reputation for more than 20 years, revealed in its 2018 study that Amazon scored 83.1 points out of 100, an 8.3-point increase on last year, placing it in the “excellent” category.

The company scored higher than any other for products and services, innovation, leadership and performance. Boots, John Lewis and Co-op ranked second, third and fourth respectively.

John Lewis regularly performs well because of its employee-owned structure, while the Co-op’s commitment to ethical sourcing and multimillionpound charity donations ensures it is seen as a responsible corporation.

At the bottom of the league table was Sports Direct, with a score of 48.4, down from 53 in 2016. Mike Ashley’s sports retailer performed worst on four measures: workplace, governance, citizenship and leadership.

The company’s pre-tax profits slumped 73pc to £77.5m in the year to April 29 after it took a hit from its stake in struggling department chain Debenhams.

Stephen Hahn-griffiths, at the Reputation Institute, said: “Amazon’s combination of selection, value, personalisation and no-hassle customer service is a winning formula.

“But threats to Amazon’s future reputation do exist. There is growing criticism, for example, of working conditions in Amazon’s vast distribution centres.”

It was revealed last week that Amazon had hired online cheerleaders paid to defend working conditions at the internet retail giant’s warehouses.

The move appears to be an attempt from Amazon to push back against claims that its warehouse workers are underpaid and work long hours.

Sports Direct has faced similar criticisms over its working conditions.