High-street department store group John Lewis has taken a major step forward in the world of e-commerce by snapping up buy.com (UK), the online retailer of computer, software and office products.
John Lewis bought the business from its American parent buy.com Inc for an undisclosed fee, and said it aimed to develop the UK’s best online range of department store products.
While the group’s Waitrose supermarket chain has developed a raft of internet initiatives, John Lewis has only tinkered with e-commerce, running a small scale online trial in the run-up to Christmas.
The department store group intends to use this knowledge to develop its own internet business, while continuing to build buy.com (UK).
Luke Mayhew, director of trading for John Lewis, said a move into e-commerce has been a key part of our strategy for some time.
“We believe we are well placed to serve customers both in our shops and direct. We know that many of our customers already shop online, and with buy.com we will be moving quickly to create the UK’s best online department store.”
Buy.com is one of most visited e-tail sites in the UK with a customer base of over 80,000 customers. New customers are being added at a rate of 3,000 a week.
In the US, buy.com Inc is the second largest e-tailer after Amazon, with sales last year of £537m.
John Lewis said that while buy.com Inc will no longer hold a stake in the UK operation, it will continue to provide technical support and advice.
EGi News 06/02/01
