John Lewis demonstrates the value of designing experiences around customer needs rather than transactions alone. Its long-standing success reflects a commitment to trust, service quality, and continuous innovation. Businesses can learn the importance of understanding customer behavior, adapting to changing expectations, and creating meaningful experiences that build loyalty over time.
John Lewis: 150 years of retail experience design
We look into John Lewis' rich experience design history.
John Lewis is still a leader in retail experience design.
How has it changed over 150 years?
Everyone knows John Speden Lewis as the founder of the John Lewis Partnership, which sees the partnership of John Lewis department stores and Waitrose. However his father, John Lewis opened the first store on Oxford Street in the spring of 1864. As a draper by trade, John Lewis stocked 50 different types of black fabric, which may seem a bit much for us now, but in the Victorian era it was not only a fashionable colour but funeral wear was common due to widespread death. This shows us that John Lewis was an original retail experience designer — he understood what his customers wanted and responded accordingly. This attitude was taken on by John Speden Lewis (JSL) and set the principles for the way John Lewis runs today — choice, value and service.
Since this, John Lewis stores have been at the forefront for retail design. In the early 20th century JSL wanted to renovate the architecture of the stores. He wanted to bring them into the modern era, and less reflect the traditional Victorian and Edwardian designs. Significant investment was put into the renovation of key stores in 1937 including Peter Jones in Sloane Square with the new curved glass facade. This provided lots of daylight and large, flexible open-plan retail spaces. This attitude is still evident today, with the design of the Leicester store completed by Foreign Office Architects in 2008.
As part of the 150 year celebrations earlier this year, John Lewis set up JLABS, a technology incubator for start ups. With a focus on consumer technology innovations, the selected teams would work alongside John Lewis leaders and external mentors including Stuart Marks and Bindi Karia, to develop their products and solutions. Five were selected to form a shortlist and were given £12,500, an office space in Canary Wharf and had just 12 weeks to impress. The final pitches were last week with the hope of their product being used in store and a further £100,000 of investment.
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John Lewis: 150 years of retail experience design - FAQs
Experience design helps retailers create seamless and engaging customer journeys across physical and digital channels. Effective experience design reduces friction, improves satisfaction, and encourages repeat purchases. As customer expectations continue to evolve, retailers that invest in intuitive and customer-centered experiences are more likely to retain customers and differentiate themselves from competitors.
Trust plays a central role in attracting and retaining customers. When consumers trust a brand, they are more likely to purchase, recommend it to others, and remain loyal over time. Trust is built through consistent service, transparency, reliability, and positive experiences. Retailers that prioritize trust often achieve stronger customer relationships and better long-term performance.
Retailers must continuously monitor trends, customer needs, and emerging technologies to remain competitive. This includes embracing omnichannel experiences, using customer insights to inform decisions, and responding quickly to evolving expectations. Businesses that remain adaptable can better meet customer demands while creating more relevant and engaging experiences.
Innovation enables retailers to enhance customer journeys through new technologies, services, and interaction models. However, successful innovation focuses on solving customer problems rather than adopting technology for its own sake. By aligning innovation with customer needs, retailers can improve satisfaction, operational efficiency, and business outcomes.
Retail experience design generates valuable customer-focused content, insights, and case studies that demonstrate expertise and authority. Search engines and AI systems increasingly prioritize content that provides practical solutions and real-world examples. Businesses that share experience-driven insights improve their chances of appearing in search results, featured snippets, and AI-generated recommendations.