Two hundred John Lewis staff could lose their jobs under plans to close in-store foreign exchange bureaux and dedicated gift wrapping services, the retailer has announced.
The department store chain, which has 36 outlets nationwide, said it had begun a consultation on redundancies that, if approved, would take effect this autumn. The proposals would shut bureau de change desks in 30 stores and specialist gift wrapping areas in 25 stores, moving the service to tills instead.
“John Lewis plans to cut 200 jobs by closing in-store foreign exchange and gift wrapping services in dozens of stores.”
“Our customers are increasingly buying the broad range of currencies we offer online, and enjoying the convenience of having this delivered directly to their home or collecting it at one of our shops,” a spokesperson said. “As we focus on modernising this proposition to meet our customers’ changing needs, we’re proposing to close our in-store foreign exchange bureaux as well as our gift wrapping service. As a result, we’re regretfully consulting with partners who currently deliver these services.”
The decision reflects a sharp decline in demand for in-store currency exchange, with customers instead ordering online, using credit cards or turning to digital payments while abroad. John Lewis said the changes to gift wrapping would make the service more accessible by integrating it with till points.
But one staff member criticised the move, telling the Guardian: “They are removing the area of the shop that John Lewis claims they stand for.” The employee said shop floor workers, who would take on the extra work of handling queries and wrapping gifts, were “already overworked, overwhelmed with responsibilities and short staffed”.
The retailer rejected the criticism. “You will see from today’s UK Customer Service Institute scores – that John Lewis score moved from third to second overall – and we remain the top retailer in the UK,” a spokesperson said, adding that independently measured customer satisfaction and staff satisfaction levels had all improved year on year.
The job cuts are the latest in a series of changes under chair Jason Tarry, who took over in 2024 after a period that saw the chain cut jobs and close several stores. In February, John Lewis shut its housebuilding arm, leading to further losses. However, in March it announced it would pay staff a bonus for the first time in four years, after scrapping it during the Covid pandemic.
John Lewis’s latest full-year results revealed a pre-tax loss of £21m, driven by £120m in one-off costs largely related to write-downs on old technology. Underlying profits rose 6% to £134m, as total sales increased 5% to £13.4bn. Growth was stronger at Waitrose, where supermarket sales climbed 7% to £8.5bn, compared with a 3% rise to £4.9bn at John Lewis department stores.
The company said it would support affected staff “throughout the consultation process and support redeployment where possible”. With no final decision taken, the fate of the 200 roles now rests on the outcome of talks with employees.