Department store leapfrogs Ikea in survey
John Lewis and Waitrose have topped a consumer satisfaction index compiled by Verdict Research, in a one-two for the John Lewis Partnership.

John Lewis's rise to the top after three years in second place is partly because of the detailed product knowledge and advice given by its staff. According to Verdict, John Lewis had 'no equal' in terms of customer service and scored highly on all other satisfaction criteria.

Last year's top retailer, Ikea, slumped to fifth place, while discount fashion formats TK Maxx and Matalan came in at three and four respectively.

Verdict senior analyst Nick Gladding said he believed shoppers had become 'a little bit fatigued by the customer experience' at Ikea. 'There is a lot of queuing and the stores are heavily congested, particularly at weekends when people want to shop,' he said.

Verdict questioned 6,000 customers about where they shopped most frequently, resulting in a list of 67 retailers. Respondents were then asked to rate the stores in terms of range, price, convenience, quality, service, ambience, facilities and layout.

The top 10 were:

  • 1 John Lewis

  • 2. Waitrose

  • 3 TK Maxx

  • 4 Matalan

  • 5 Ikea

  • 6 Amazon

  • 7 Savers

  • 8 Schuh

  • 9 Wilkinson

  • 10 B&Q