The bonuses trousered by bankers may provoke widespread anger and resentment but there’s one business cash bonanza that nobody objects to – the annual John Lewis share-out.
The bonuses trousered by bankers may provoke widespread anger and resentment but there’s one business cash bonanza that nobody objects to – the annual John Lewis share-out.
This year the partners aren’t getting as much as they did last, but the yearly bonanza has established itself as one of retail’s red letter days.
John Lewis’s big payday may have earned itself special prominence but it’s often forgotten that sharing the rewards of success is not uncommon in retail. Many of the best known names dish out bonuses or run share schemes for their hard-working staff.
One of the most potentially lucrative is also probably one of the least well-known outside retail. Sports Direct tycoon Mike Ashley is one of the sector’s brashest personalities and a fixture in the tabloids. Many people would know him for controversially renaming St James’s Park, but how many would realise that the company he founded is poised to share out the biggest ever staff windfall to store employees?
Assuming stretching targets are met, and they should be, full-time employees of Sports Direct will be rewarded with shares worth more than twice their salaries. The average is likely to be about £44,000, most of which would be paid out next summer.
What a testament to the effort put in by the coalface staff, and what a rebuke to those who attack retail as a low-grade career option or an exploitative employer. Retailers value their staff – in a very concrete way.
From John Lewis at one end of the retail scale to Sports Direct at the other, and taking in most points in between, retail remains one of the most meritocratic of industries.
A challenging Game
The predicament of Game is a reminder of the unprecedented extent of transformation in entertainment retail. After being unable to agree terms with key suppliers, Game will not be stocking some of the biggest forthcoming releases – a hammer blow for the embattled business.
Boss Ian Shepherd is battling valiantly to reinvigorate Game but he’s operating in a ferociously tough market.
He can take some inspiration from Simon Fox at HMV, who has faced similar fundamental problems but found a way forward. But Game seems to lack the supplier support that was given to HMV. That looks ominous.
1 Reader's comment