John Lewis and TrueStart join forces to fast-track disruptive retail startups
The John Lewis Partnership has joined forces with the investment fund TrueStart to create The Eureka Initiative – a “focused campaign” which aims to “find, fund and fast-track disruptive retail-specific startups”. The Eureka Initiative will enable startups within TrueStart’s own accelerator programme, The Collection, to gain exposure to the John Lewis Partnership’s retail capabilities, with the aim of bringing the best ideas to commercial reality.
In a statement sent to Post&Parcel today, John Lewis Partnership said the initiative will support “never-seen-before products and services – from the drawing board to customers via the shop floor and website”/
Tom Athron, Group Development Director at the John Lewis Partnership, said: “The John Lewis Partnership began life as a brave entrepreneurial experiment. By collaborating with TrueStart we will be supporting the future growth of our company by partnering with like-minded entrepreneurs and fast tracking their ideas. I firmly believe that all businesses focused on growth in a rapidly changing world will need a few eureka moments to thrive.”
Matt Truman, CEO at True Capital, added: “TrueStart looks to work with genuinely disruptive businesses that have the potential to inform real change in the retail sector. I am delighted to welcome the John Lewis Partnership on board as our latest strategic partner. By joining forces we can lean on our joint expertise to ensure that the retail industry keeps innovation at its core, transforming the fashion, home and technology sectors in these rapidly changing times.”
The Eureka Initiative between the John Lewis Partnership and TrueStart will complement the John Lewis Partnerships’ existing incubator, JLAB. According to the company, JLAB has “already uncovered technology-based solutions to some of John Lewis’s operational challenges”.
