I'm shocked at JLP here and I have heard a couple of stories from friends who have also been let down recently.
All retailers have to reconcile the cost of returns and refunds etc. with sensible commercial risk. JLP has historically erred on the generous side here as (IMO) a key part of its proposition which amounts to "you're safe with John Lewis".
There is inevitably abuse. I'm almost certain that JLP, which has been having a nightmare time with profitability and has closed about 1/3 of its shops, identified the costs of being so customer friendly and tightened the internal procedures to limit those costs.
In doing so they forgot, or decided to ignore, that the key to their past success has been the reassurance that customers got from shopping there. They were the nanny retailer, who would give you a price promise, great advice, and put problems right until you were satisfied.
It sounds as if the baby has gone down the plughole with the bathwater, and unless they get it back their decline will only accelerate.
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