John Lewis offers in-store wi-fi

UK department store John Lewis has launched a free wi-fi service in its stores.

The service allows customers to access product information, reviews and ratings on their smartphones or iPads anywhere in-store. And customers can also visit other sites, including those of rival stores, to compare prices – reinforcing John Lewis’ ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ pricing promise.

“This is a major development in John Lewis’s vision for multichannel retail,” said John Lewis IT Director Paul Coby.

“We have made great progress with online which is now growing at between 25 per cent and 30 per cent compared to last year and amounts to circa 20 per cent of our revenue.”

“We know our customers are mobile and want to be connected anywhere, anytime and any place.This of course means in John Lewis shops and we are committed to providing that connectivity and easy access to our fantastic assortment through our customers’ smart phones, iPhones and iPads.”

Every John Lewis branch will also be equipped with “digital champions” trained to help customers with online shopping.

John Lewis’ latest offering supports the Race Online, a government initiative which encourages shoppers to use internet. The instore wife was supplied by hotspot provider BT Openzone. 

The department store will also introduce an iPhone app to help customers access John Lewis products, video and reviews in-store while looking at the product.

“We recognise that mobile phones have become a crucial part of people’s shopping habits. The roll-out of wi-fi in our shops is a big step forward in helping customers to have all of the information they need at their fingertips to make an informed purchase,” said John Lewis head of multichannel Simon Russell.

GB

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