John Lewis Watford at Christmas 2008

Our Editor is privy to a behind-the-scenes look at John Lewis Watford - And a quick chat with the MD - Jenny Tomley

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The clean lines and efficient atmosphere are mirrored behind the scenes at Watford’s John Lewis store. I can vouch for this as I was invited to tour the usually out of bounds areas by Jenny Tomley, Managing Director, to experience how they prepare for Christmas.

I was impressed with the efficiency of the whole operation from the kitchens where the restaurant and staff food is prepared fresh each day to the stunning speed with which new stock is cleared from the loading bay and placed for availability on the shelves.

Back onto the shop floor to see the top selling gifts this year was a revelation. It seems the Sony Electronic Book RRP £194 is the popular choice for those who love reading but are often on the move and don’t want to carry a large volume. It’s available exclusively to JL in red.

For children the popular choices seem to be an interactive Elmo RRP £58.00 and a Cup Cake Maker RRP £39.

Pre-school children will enjoy the full range of ‘In the Night Garden’ toys.

For those children who would love a ‘dog’ for Christmas but Mummy and Daddy say ‘no’, then the interactive ‘Biscuit the Dog’ RRP £149 has all the benefits of being loving, loyal and obedient without the disadvantages of early morning walks and unfortunate accidents!

For those who have never quite grown up John Lewis has a full complement of Retro Toys from yesteryear, which includes ‘Flipping Fish’ and ‘Tail-less Donkey’. Unfortunately, I have to admit to being old enough to get these when I was young…….believe me, fanning a paper fish across the living room was about as exciting as Christmas games got in those days!

The tradition of giving is all the year through at John Lewis not just for Christmas. Their ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ was launched in 1925 to give everyone the best possible price. The ‘Partnership Scheme’ which means ‘all’ share in the profits was introduced by John Lewis’s innovative son Stephen in 1950 at Peter Jones.

‘How will John Lewis weather the ‘credit crunch’ storm?’ I asked Jenny Tomley.

She replied that the solid foundations were laid long ago. “This is the time they count, this is when my sales force are put to the test thinking up new ways to keep daily sales to the maximum; when we have to be innovative and creative with our ideas and marketing; when we must never allow our standards to drop. We are committed to offering the best possible service backed up by the price pledge.”

John Lewis is the Harlequin’s year round ‘Jewel in the Crown’ not just our ‘star’ for Christmas!

They're open 'till 4:30pm on Christmas Eve - so there's still time to enjoy this fine shop with its unbeatable prices as well as knowledgeable and friendly staff as you pick up those last minute gifts.

Full contact details and opening hours for Xmas and New Year

Learn about the history of the John Lewis Partnership

This article was created on Monday, 22nd December 2008. It was last tinkered with on Tuesday, 23rd December 2008.

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