John Lewis Liverpool has unveiled its newly revamped sports floor, bringing together performance sportswear, footwear and wellness technology in one destination. Today, Wednesday, August 19, sees the Liverpool store become the second of four John Lewis locations to introduce the new format, designed around activities including training, performance sport and running rather than traditional product categories.
New brands and features
The new sports edit features leading brands including Nike, Adidas, Puma, Under Armour, J.Lindeberg and Patagonia, alongside specialist footwear brands Asics, Brooks and Salomon. Customers can shop for everything from running trainers and hiking shorts to yoga wear and Hyrox-ready sets.
Selected stores, including Liverpool, also offer free gait analysis from a self-service scanner providing quick recommendations to an in-depth treadmill assessment through Peloton. Gait analysis is the study of how you walk or run.
Buying manager comments on new format
Enni Charlton, Sports Buying Manager at John Lewis, said: “We’re really excited that our new in-store format breaks the traditional retail set-up by integrating wearables, recovery tools and fitness equipment directly alongside apparel and footwear.
“By zoning the floor by activity rather than product category, we’re creating a new discovery space that makes it easier for customers to find what they need.”
Run club and social-cising trend
John Lewis has also launched a monthly run club, Jog Lewis, in partnership with brands including Asics and Peloton. This will be available from Liverpool starting in September. The whole transformation is part of a wider multi-million-pound investment totalling £800m.
The John Lewis team said the relaunch comes as the way people approach fitness continues to change. New research found that 42% of UK adults are combining exercise with social plans more often than ever before – a trend dubbed ‘social-cising’.
The trend is particularly strong in the North West, where 51% of adults say they would be likely to choose an exercise activity such as running, padel, cycling or a fitness class combined with socialising over traditional activities such as drinking or eating out.
Saturday is the most popular day for social-cising among this group, which includes Liverpool residents.
Wellness tech and home gym equipment
Wellness is also extending beyond the workout itself. More than half of UK adults who exercise now track biometric data, prompting John Lewis to create a dedicated wellness tech hub featuring brands including Whoop, Oura and Shokz. Sales of fitness trackers at John Lewis are up 27% year on year.
For customers building an at-home gym, the new space features equipment from Peloton, NordicTrack and Speediance, including exercise bikes, treadmills, resistance trainers and Pilates reformers. Magic AI’s AI Fitness Mirror offers personalised, on-demand workouts with real-time rep counting and form correction.
