John Lewis – in fashion?

Store manager Amanda Dammers described – and acted out – the process from the moment a customer enters a John Lewis store to the moment they leave in a state of euphoric bliss, clutching a coveted Jaeger Tilly bag.

The pep talk whipped the eager new employees into a frenzy, as they strained at the leash to be let loose on Leicester shoppers.

It is this element of John Lewis – the customer service and after-sales care – that has worked so well for the retailer, which is better known for its supremacy in the home and electricals categories.

But there is a new category in fashion.

John Lewis’ fashion offer has, somewhat surprisingly, led the department store chain’s performance in the half year to July 26. Sales were up 5 per cent, compared with a robust 1 per cent rise in electricals, while the home directorate fell off by 5 per cent in the wake of the stalling housing market (click here to read more).

And the retailer has invested£1.5 million in its largest fashion campaign featuring supermodel and rock chick Karen Elson (click here to read more).

It bags and rock‘n’roll – at John Lewis? Yes. And it wants fashion to be the source of its light at the end of the tunnel, after operating profits tumbled 34.4 per cent to£40 million in the first half.

John Lewis managing director Andy Street said it is relying on the division to continue its present momentum. “If we can achieve a 5 per cent sales increase again in fashion in this marketplace, I will be happy,” he said, referring to the second half.

But a reputation for second-to-none service alone is not enough to tempt shoppers in the fickle world of fashion.

The retailer is going the right way towards achieving a new identity for the brands it stocks and is attracting edgy names, such as Ted Baker, Reiss and Nicole Farhi. It will also unveil a brand spanking new identity for its fashion departments at its Bluewater and Cardiff stores next year.

However, whether the fashion campaign and new look will go far enough to persuade shoppers – who have traditionally flocked to John Lewis for the quality and value of its own-brand product in other categories – to part with their cash for its fashion offer remains to be seen.

According to the figures, it is working so far and market share gains have been made, albeit from a lower base.

Although Street does not predict that conditions will improve dramatically in the second half for John Lewis or the sector, he believes that the new impetus behind fashion will help it to emerge a winner at Christmas. “It is all still to play for,” he said.