LONDON, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Britain's retailer John Lewis Partnership said Thursday that 2020 has been one of the most challenging year in its history, as it recorded a financial slump last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the year ending to Jan. 30, the retailer recorded a loss before tax of 517 million pounds (about 720.2 million U.S. dollars), compared to a profit before tax of 146 million pounds (about 203.4 million dollars) in the previous year, said the company.
"John Lewis shops are now held on our balance sheet at almost half the value they were before this year's and last year's write downs," said the company.
The company said the dramatic shift to online sales, alongside restructuring and redundancy costs from store closures, among others, have significantly impacted its operating performance.
"We are not out of the crisis yet and the economic environment remains extremely uncertain," said Sharon White, chairman of John Lewis Partnership.
According to the retailer, the outlook in the year ahead is "uniquely uncertain" as the country charts its exit from lockdown, with non-essential retail in England due to open on April 12 at the earliest and the timetable varying in Scotland and Wales.
"No one has a crystal ball to predict the strength and pace of the recovery -- or the future course of the virus," White said.
"Regrettably, we do not expect to reopen all our John Lewis shops at the end of lockdown, which will also have implications for our supply chain," said White, adding that the retailer is currently in discussions with landlords and "final decisions are expected by the end of March."
Founded in 1864, the John Lewis Partnership is Britain's largest employee-owned business and parent company of two retail brands -- John Lewis & Partners and Waitrose & Partners.
On Feb. 22, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his long-anticipated "roadmap" exiting the lockdown. The reopening of schools in England on Monday was the first part of the four-step plan, which Johnson said was designed to be "cautious but irreversible".
To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines. Enditem