Co-op Group to extend John Lewis click & collect service to 50-plus stores

The extended trial follows the introduction of the Next Day click & collect service in six Co-op food stores in May, which the group has hailed as a success.

The service will be introduced in Co-op Group stores within communities where the John Lewis Partnership – including Waitrose – has a lower presence.

The click & collect service will now be available in towns and cities across the UK, including: Bristol; Cambridge; Derby; Leicester; London; Manchester; Nottingham; Plymouth; and Wrexham.

The phased roll out will be completed by the end of October 2019.

Co-op director of retail support, Mark Pettigrew, said: “This latest development enables Co-op to enrich its offer in more communities. We continually look to ways to evolve in order to meet the needs of our Members and customers, and our initial trial has been very well received – creating added choice, ease and convenience for time-pressed shoppers.”

Meanwhile, the John Lewis Partnership has announced that profits at Waitrose improved in the half year ending 27 July, up by £14.1m to £110.1m, despite a “marginal decline” in like-for-like sales. The sales dip came in the face of a “weak grocery market”, parent company John Lewis said.

The improvements in gross margins stemmed from 47 completed category reviews. It also announced a 10.7% growth in online grocery sales.