Retail giant John Lewis says future development of the company could include a horticultural side of the business.
As part of its strategic review, John Lewis has sought the views of customers, suppliers and its partners on how it could grow.
And horticulture is one of four ideas that the company will investigate further, along with financial services, private rented housing and rental/resale/recycle.
John Lewis chairman Sharon White said: “Horticulture, this was the number one idea from Partners and is highly relevant to our target customers. We are exploring how we build a new business out of Waitrose Garden, Leckford Estate and the Waitrose Farm, landscaping and John Lewis Outdoor Living – potentially with new partnerships and acquisitions.”
She added: “We clearly won’t be able to achieve all this alone. So we will create partnerships with other businesses who respect our ethos and can bring resources or capabilities we don’t have. This will allow us to grow efficiently. Partnerships will give new meaning to our ‘& Partners’ rebranding. We are already in a number of commercial discussions and are also looking at acquisitions.”
With retail profit margins under pressure, Sharon White says the company needs to expand beyond retail. “More than that - we have the opportunity to offer our customers new services where trust and a strong sense of purpose are important.”