Market Segmentation of John Lewis
We all enjoy large department stores, allowing us to walk through and detect the necessary items we seek. Isn’t it fun to get a fluffy pair of pajamas and a comfortable couch for the living room, all at the exact location? It just feels like a holiday sometimes. And with the department store industry being a highly competitive one, everybody has their preferences. One of the top companies in the field is John Lewis & Partners, previously called John Lewis. It is a British company working throughout the UK and has some locations in Ireland. Let’s dig deeper to unravel more details regarding the John Lewis success.
Segmentation strategy of John Lewis.
After looking at the Instagram post below, we can further unravel the archetype that John Lewis belongs to.
This post matches the Barbie aesthetics the world follows, full of pink, sunshine, and rainbows. However, the initiative is much deeper than clothes coloring, which this post attempts to communicate.
According to the post’s caption, we can see that HURR powers the pink dress collection, and this aesthetic powerfully adds up to the John Lewis Fashion Rental.
The dresses resemble Barrus London Pink Sequin Mini Dress, New Arrivals Phoenix in Pacha Rosa, & Other Stories Multi-Tiered Ruffle Maxi Dress, Hutch Briggs Dress, and New Arrivals Lena.
The outfits are accessorized by Ted Baker, SJP, Mango, HVISK, Mulberry, Yves Saint Laurent, etc.
Now, what can we gather from this post?
The wish to appear good-looking and trendy is inevitably the most significant hint we gather from this post. It is all about following the trends with a fantastic collection and associations with multiple well-known brands.
Following the trends and contributing to modern fashion is another hint from this post. Besides this post, the Instagram page strives to ensure its social media marketing is relevant and chic.
With that said, we now know that the archetype that John Lewis belongs to is the Chardonnays.
Before getting into discussing Chardonnays, why are brand archetypes so significant?
Our communication strategy can employ various systems, each of which can contribute to achieving a different objective. However, a single core logic can compile each of these messages. It is communication-based on archetypal branding in the latter.
It enables us to guarantee the precision and originality of our messaging. Look into the various underlying meanings and connotations of inspirational sayings that claim your brand can reach people wherever.
One entails becoming a hero; the other is picking up new abilities. These ideas can be combined and improved through communication-based on archetypes.
We advise reading “8 Steps To a Complete Archetypal Branding” to learn how it could improve the effect of your remark.
Now, let us focus on Chardonnays to learn more about John Lewis.
Lifestyle and values:
This segment enjoys being active, talking with others, and attending significant events. They have romantic beliefs.
Appearance is a hugely important aspect of their life. It helps a lot to dress well.
Chardonnays have an unearthly quality and recognize that there is a power outside of ourselves. This segment enjoys learning intriguing facts about various cultures and keeps abreast of global affairs.
Attitude to shopping:
Chardonnays take great care to pick up on and mimic contemporary trends.
Chardonnay drinkers also enjoy treating themselves to pricey, high-end items.
Claims for items of higher caliber should be made less frequently.
Chardonnays take into account the importance of innovations like role models.
To get this segment to pay attention, ads must be produced in an exciting and attention-getting way.
Ads must be produced engaging and attention-grabbing for this segment to pay attention.
Other interesting facts:
They
- take on hobbies that reflect their personalities one way or the other
- regularly attend the gym, and their goal of working out is to stay in shape
- know very well how to behave to have a great time, and are incredibly socially active
- I enjoy having a wild nightlife
- enjoy spending their free time shopping because it makes them feel comfortable and confident
- love shopping due to it being satisfactory
- like to stay informed on issues that feel significant for them
- are not the most environmentally friendly people out there, but they love spending time in nature
- adore spending time with their family during the weekend
- are regularly seeking perfect relationships and end up feeling heartbroken whenever a relationship does not work out
- spend a considerable time of their day on the internet, sharing occasions in their lives that are significant
- are above-average TV consumers
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John Lewis’s positioning strategy
The ‘For all life’s moments’ marketing promise, which John Lewis presented last week, has gotten a “good response,” according to Sharon White, chair of the John Lewis Partnership.
She remarked that the new stance, which has replaced John Lewis’s steadfast “Never knowingly undersold” motto, is “just the beginning.” She noted that the previous position, which includes much more, is “extremely different” from the prior tagline, which was a “price promise.”
White stated during the company’s half-year results call that it was “absolutely fundamental to their turnaround plan. She continued that the brand positioning will also become very substantial over the next three to five years, underscoring the company’s long-term commitment to the ground-breaking idea.
Given the inflationary environment and how it ties to the company’s “lean, simple, fast” mission, the five-year plan is currently a “huge theme” for the organization, according to White.
For all life’s moments is “not a marketing slogan,” according to Pippa Wicks, executive director of John Lewis, but rather the spine through a body from which everything hangs off and holds together the John Lewis brand.
As a result of the new position, the company has invested £500 million in pricing and marketing, which, in Wicks’ opinion, has allowed it to provide discounts that are particularly suited to its clients. Additionally, she continued, it suggests that they might be able to choose their path rather than being compelled to react to what clients do.
According to her, the first half of the year was spent reinvigorating the brand and investing in the customer experience, and they have been very blessed to see like-for-like sales up 3% in the first half and 30% against 2019.
The Partnership lost £99 million in the 26 weeks leading up to July 30 despite a 4% increase in consumer traffic because of a mix of cost of living concerns, inflationary charges, and expenses needed to help staff, clients, and suppliers.
Following the resurgence of traditional retail, John Lewis had a 13% increase in like-for-like sales from 2019 to 2020. Average shop sales were 60% before Covid, 26% during the pandemic-related half-year of 2016, and 41% during the first half of 2017. Due to a rise in office employment, city center businesses have seen the most comeback.
However, the fashion industry has emerged as the retailer’s best-performing section, expanding by 25% over the previous year because of robust Christmas clothes sales.
The epidemic-affected housing and technology industries have suffered annual reductions. Brand’s market worth Anyday sales increased by 28% throughout the year’s first six months.
John Lewis launched the value line in April 2021 to offer “something for everyone’s wallet.”
Wicks claimed that the company makes an effort to maintain steady prices. For instance, the cost of school uniforms will not alter until 2021.
The company’s new shop design will reflect this because it lives into being there for all life’s moments, not just the big moments but the everyday ones.
Additionally, the Partnership today revealed an employee assistance program that includes a wage raise for the lowest-paid employees and a £500 one-time cost of living stipend for full- or part-time workers. Additionally, the business has agreed to provide free meals during the winter.
This is related to the company’s conscious decision to forego profit to provide more support, as stated by the corporation.
When asked whether the Queen’s death would affect consumer sentiment, White responded that energy bills had been the biggest drag on consumer sentiment before the government intervened in energy prices.
She continued by saying that she thinks the two-year freeze on the cap will have quite a profound impact.
Despite this, they do not feel comfortable. She noted that the company is stressing more promotions so that they may better customize them to their clients and buying habits. They are even more firmly focused on value now.
She continued that They will focus on affordability without letting go of the quality and service that customers expect from the brands.
The business is not reducing its marketing expenditures. Wicks asserts that they evaluate the parts of the marketing budget where they are getting the best returns on investment daily and weekly. Wicks believes maintaining and effectively using the marketing budget is one strategy for growing the company.
Market selection necessitates a constant balancing act, yet you can not expect the business to survive in the long run without being proactive and reachable when clients make decisions.
To minimize price rises, the company underlined how it minimizes the effects of inflation on customers. It was emphasized that a surge in supply chain fuel costs of 47%, an increase in transportation costs of 164%, and an increase in gas and power prices of 19% have all influenced the collaboration.
Usually, we have opted to put our clients’ needs ahead of our desire to profit. Berangere Michel, executive director of finance, interprets this as indicating that not all of our cost increases have been passed on to customers. Customers have not seen any inflation-related salary hikes, supply-chain expenses, power and gas price increases, or operating cost increases.
With 85% of the items already in the country, John Lewis has allegedly made early investments to guarantee that it is ready for the Christmas peak and has been building stock intake for the second half of the year at a greater rate than the previous year.
Marketing mix of John Lewis.
The marketing mix covers a company’s product, price, place, and promotion. So let’s discuss those one by one.
Product:
With its headquarters in the UK, John Lewis is one of the top premium merchants. John Lewis offers an unmatched selection of services, from personal styling and nursery design advice to appliance installation and technical assistance. As part of their marketing strategy, the retail establishments offer various services. John Lewis sells goods in multiple markets, including baby and children’s, electrical and technology, gifts and celebrations, home and design, and gifts and electricals.
The Herbert Parkinson mill in Lancashire produces the duvets, pillows, and upholstery fabrics they sell under their name. The mill also offers Made to Measure voile, roller blinds, and seven-day curtain services.
Price:
According to John Lewis, fair pricing has always been a top priority for his company. It pays great attention to the value and quality of its products while maintaining a competitive price approach.
The business regularly compares its products to those available on the market. Its plan guarantees that all competitors’ prices will be meager to corner the market. Every day, especially during sales and online, John Lewis’ price monitoring team actively tracks the costs of branded goods sold by their rivals.
They swiftly match that price in their online and physical stores if a rival provides the same product and service terms at a lower price. This approach will benefit all customers because they cannot find a better offer elsewhere and can quickly request a price match if they do. The company generates annual revenue of almost $3 billion.
Place:
To provide for its clients, John Lewis has a multi-channel strategy and a variety of distribution methods. In addition to having several unique retail sites in Britain, the company has aggressively extended its footprint in e-commerce by utilizing networks like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. They have also made smartphone applications available for the clients’ comfort. John Lewis operates fifty stores over all of England. There is one within Heathrow Airport as well. In addition, it debuted in Australia’s New South Wales with its first concession stand.
Several stores could not run due to the 2020 pandemic due to consumer attrition.
Promotion:
John Lewis has utilized innovative festival events and cutting-edge marketing tactics to create standout product promotions. Since almost ten years ago, customers have anticipated the company’s imaginative Christmas advertising because they touch the heart. Buster the Boxer, The Journey, The Bear and the Hare, Monty the Penguin, and The Long Wait are just a few of their well-known ad campaigns. All of these holiday advertisements assist firms in dominating the market and gaining recognition.
The “Long Wait” campaign has even been adopted as an official lesson in the core curriculum. Their videos have received millions of views on YouTube, won numerous awards as the UK’s favorite advertising, and millions of people have watched them.
One of the more modern promotional techniques that John Lewis has continued to use to encourage customers to purchase more of the program-eligible goods and services and thereby earn a loyalty status that entitles them to a predetermined number of free purchases is the “joint promotion with other product/services” example.
John Lewis used the chance to promote his business and the Olympics simultaneously. Both the London Olympics and the Commonwealth Games were successfully sponsored by it.
And that concludes the John Lewis & Partners blog, where we touched upon the company’s segmentation, positioning, and marketing mix. To unravel more blogs about other well-known companies, do not hesitate to stop by our main website.
