Sheffield's John Lewis and Waitrose branches under threat as chain warns of store closures

The firm has been forced to cut staff bonuses to their lowest level in almost 70 years.

And the retailer, which also owns Waitrose, has launched a review of the business which it said would involve "right sizing" its stores across both brands.

The chain has a flagship store in Barker’s Pool as well as a Waitrose supermarket on Ecclesall Road.

The review would involve store closures "where necessary" as well as space reduction in existing stores, it said.

The conclusions of the review are expected to be announced in September.

New chair Sharon White - who took over last month - said the changes would kick-start a "vital new phase" for the partnership, and said she had "no doubt" the business would be stronger as a result.

"We need to reverse our profit decline and return to growth so that we can invest more in our customers and in our partners.

"This will require a transformation in how we operate as a partnership and could take three to five years to show results."

The John Lewis Partnership is owned by its staff - known as partners - who usually receive a bonus each year.

This year, staff bonuses have been set at 2%, the lowest since 1953 when it paid no bonus.

Profits at the partnership dived by 23% last year to £123m - the third year in a row that profits have fallen - as it continued to struggle with the slowdown in consumer spending.

The group employs more than 80,000, operating 50 John Lewis stores and 338 branches of Waitrose.

Sheffield’s John Lewis department store announced earlier this year it was staying put as work takes place on Heart of the City II, the council's £500 million scheme to transform 1.5 million sq ft of land between Pinstone Street, Wellington Street and The Moor with new shops, hotels, offices, apartments, leisure facilities and cafés.

The retailer owns the land on which the shop – built in 1963 for Cole Brothers and rebranded in 2002 – stands.