John Lewis Partnership repays HM Treasury and Bank of England Covid Corporate Financing Facility

FRIDAY 22 JANUARY 2021

The John Lewis Partnership is today announcing the early repayment of the £300m HM Treasury and Bank of England Covid Corporate Financing Facility, which was due for repayment on 15 March 2021.

Despite the head winds of the last year when John Lewis stores were closed for several months, and future trading volatility, the Partnership believes it has sufficient liquidity going forward.

Trading during peak, which includes Black Friday and the Christmas period, held up better than anticipated. As a result, we expect our full-year profits to be ahead of the profit guidance provided at our half-year results last September, where we said the most likely outcome would be a small loss or a small profit for 2020/21. We will publish our full-year results on 11 March 2021.

NOTES TO EDITORS

About the John Lewis Partnership

The John Lewis Partnership owns and operates two of Britain's best-loved retail brands - John Lewis & Partners and Waitrose & Partners. Started as a radical idea nearly a century ago, the Partnership is the largest employee-owned business in the UK and amongst the largest in the world, with over 78,000 employees who are all Partners in the business. For all intents and purposes, the Partnership is a social enterprise; the profits made are reinvested into the business - for customers and Partners. John Lewis & Partners operates 42 shops plus one outlet across the UK as well as johnlewis.com. Waitrose & Partners has 332 shops in England, Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands, including 59 convenience branches, and another 27 shops at Welcome Break locations. Waitrose & Partners exports products to more than 50 countries worldwide and has 13 shops which operate under licence in the UAE. The retailer's omnichannel business includes the online grocery service, Waitrose.com, as well as specialist online shops including waitrosecellar.com for wine and waitroseflorist.com for plants and flowers.

media ENQUIRIES

John Lewis Partnership


Chris Wynn

Partner & Director of Corporate Communications
Tel: 07980 242019
Email: chris.wynn@johnlewis.co.uk
 
Sarah Henderson
Partner & Senior External Communications Manager
Tel: 07764 676036
Email: sarah.henderson@johnlewis.co.uk

Debt Investors

 
Lynn Lochhead
Partner & Head of Treasury and Corporate Finance
Email: investor.relations@johnlewis.co.uk