John Lewis’s first department store opening in London in 20 years is first of ‘next generation’ shops
John Lewis today (13 September) debuts its most carbon efficient and contemporary shop to date as it opens in Westfield Stratford City.
John Lewis’s first full line department store in London in 20 years opens at 10am in the largest urban shopping centre in Europe.
The four-storey, 260,000sq ft shop is the most carbon efficient John Lewis shop ever built, with improvements to the shop’s design and the addition of an advanced air conditioning and cooling system reducing its carbon footprint by 60%.
Lamps using new technology have been installed on the shop floor to save energy, all timber used was sourced from FSC certified sustainable sources and some 99.97% of waste from the build was diverted from landfill.
John Lewis Stratford City boasts over 350,000 exciting products including fashion, furniture, homewares, beauty and the latest technology from leading brands in addition to John Lewis own brand products.
More than 750 jobs have been created at John Lewis Stratford City and half of the new Partners have been recruited from the local area, including 200 long term unemployed.
Noel Saunders, managing director of John Lewis Stratford City said: "The opening of our first 'next generation' department store marks a major milestone for John Lewis and for London – this is a real celebration for us.
“The Stratford shop is the first full line department store John Lewis has opened in London in 20 years and doing it less than a year before the London 2012 Games in east London makes it even more exciting.
"We have invested significantly in this new shop to make it the greenest and most contemporary yet and to offer our existing and new customers a unique new shopping experience. In Stratford City we have brought together a range of exciting features including exclusive products, new concepts and an unrivalled customer experience to make this one of the most exciting shop openings in the history of John Lewis.”
John Lewis Managing Director, Andy Street said: “The spotlight of the world will be on Stratford in the lead up to and during the 2012 Games and it is right that John Lewis part of a world class shopping centre. Opening John Lewis Stratford City gives us a real opportunity to make a positive change to the local area through the creation of jobs and we are totally committed to the role we will play in the regeneration and transformation of east London.”
