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RETAIL
Setting great store
From working hard to stay relevant on the high street, to navigating the pandemic, the John Lewis & Partners Cribbs Causeway team are taking on new challenges and reacting to changing consumer demand. Words by Libby Dallin
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t was in Broadmead in 1950 that John Lewis & Partners Cribbs Causeway started life, when the world and the customers it served were very different. Despite tough circumstances and changing times, the retail giant still stands today, at The Mall at Cribbs Causeway. A team of over 600 Partners work across four floors, selling everything from toys to televisions, and providing home design, fashion and nursery services to help us through life’s biggest moments. The store is home to experts in all areas, and displays regarded as some of the most beautiful and inspirational in the region. At the helm is branch manager Chris Hooper and, with the support of Partners, the store is on-hand this Christmas to help us create new memories and treasure those we love. Like the rest of us, the store has had an unusual year. From working hard to stay relevant on the high street, to navigating the pandemic, the team have had to take on new challenges and react to changing consumer demand. For the first time in his career, Chris had to face closing a store, not knowing when Partners could safely return. Weathering the storm was only possible with a strong community committed to the future. Now, having been open again since June, John Lewis & Partners Cribbs Causeway is gearing up for what could be its most important Christmas yet. We sat down with Chris to find out how they are supporting us in celebrating this season. LD: I’m sure, like me, you’re thinking about how we can make Christmas special despite things being a little strange. Do you foresee your own Christmas being different this year? 52 THE BRISTOL MAGAZINE
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NOVEMBER 2020
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No 194
CH: Christmas will be different, but we’ll adapt and try and make sure it’s a great experience with family members. Having a daughter who is working frontline NHS will, no doubt, make it unique and maybe a little fragmented, but we’re prepared for something a little more unusual. This Christmas, more than ever, will be about connecting with the ones we love. It might be easy to think that it will be less magical this year, and may pass us by to some extent. My team and I are determined not to let that happen. We intend to make this Christmas in John Lewis & Partners even more magical than before, despite the limitations, so come in and be inspired. We’ll do everything to make you feel safe and to make the experience an enjoyable one. Even though we are heavily impacted by the current crisis, we hope we might be able to offer some sort of respite from it as well. Which area of the store is your favourite this time of year, and why? It’s got to be the gifting assortments and the food and drink. It’s great to have an excuse to buy family and friends fabulous gifts, beautifully packaged. A lot of it isn’t something you’d buy for yourself, but to surprise someone else, that’s a great opportunity. It doesn’t look like we’ll be attending any parties or significant social gatherings this year, so we’ve got even more time to focus on giving our loved ones unique and inspiring gifts, and maybe ones that really reflect their personality. Many people really deserve something special this year, and we’ve got some creative options. We’re particularly pleased to be setting up a hamper station which will help us create beautifully curated gifts.
