John Lewis taps former Marks & Spencer marketing head as CCO

British department store John Lewis has named Anna Braithwaite as its new chief customer officer. In the role, she has been tasked with leading the John Lewis brand and marketing across all channels, loyalty, customer experience and creative and content teams.

Braithwaite, who will report to John Lewis’ managing director Peter Ruis after taking up the position on October 1, will join the company from Marks & Spencer, where she most recently served as marketing director for Fashion, Home and Beauty.

Braithwaite had led a transformative period during her tenure at the rival department store chain, helping to shape its marketing strategy and contributing to the launch of notable campaigns.

Her latest appointment is somewhat of a homecoming, however. Braithwaite had started her career at John Lewis, where she had previously spent 11 years, initially joining the company’s Graduate Training Scheme before becoming manager brand marketing.

Braithwaite went on to serve in various roles at Hobbs and Jacques Vert, before joining Tesco, where she served as head of brand marketing for the supermarket’s F&F clothing brand.

In reference to her now over 25 years of experience, Ruis said Braithwaite’s “understanding of the John Lewis brand and her laser focus on the needs of customers makes her the ideal person to lead our customer and marketing strategy”.

In her own statement, Braithwaite added that she was “excited to be joining at such a pivotal time, following the return of a re-energised Never Knowingly Undersold”, the retailer’s competitive pricing scheme.