The chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, the department store chain that owns Waitrose, saw his pay last year jump by 25 per cent to £1.2m – despite the firm cutting thousands of jobs.
Jason Tarry also got a near-£23,000 bonus, according to the company’s annual report released on Wednesday. That pay rise came even though the retailer cut 3,300 jobs in the period.
While the business is theoretically owned by its staff – the partners – they do not decide the boss’s pay. That is the call of the company remuneration committee.
Mr Tarry became chairman of JLP in September 2024, when he replaced Sharon White. JLP said his pay rose to reflect the fact that he also replaced chief executive Nish Kankiwala, who left last year. His role was effectively removed, which means the company’s total executive pay has fallen, analysts noted.
JLP had not paid staff a bonus for four years as it looked for cost savings and strategy changes. Plans to move into the housing market were ditched.
In March this year, it paid a 2 per cent bonus to partners after recording a rise in annual sales of 5 per cent to £13.4bn.
The report shows it has 65,700 staff, down from 69,000. Back in 2023, it employed more than 76,000 people.
JLP said: “With the chairman and CEO roles now combined, the chairman’s remuneration reflects leadership of both the executive team and the partnership board.”
It said most of the staff who left were not made redundant, but left through “natural attrition”.
John Lewis and Waitrose are regarded as mainstays of the British high street, as beloved as Marks & Spencer amongst the shopping middle classes.
Like other large retailers, it has struggled recently with competition from cut-price players such as Aldi and internet rivals such as Amazon.
It has closed stores, as well as cutting jobs, in common with most retailers.
While partners might baulk at Mr Tarry’s pay, it is far lower than that of other retail chiefs.
M&S chief executive Stuart Machin was paid £7.1m for the year to March, though he is running a significantly bigger business.
John Lewis has 36 stores, while Waitrose has 320 across the country.