Fashion chain Jigsaw(Clothing Display) is planning new stores and a greater emphasis on fashion under a revamp planned by its new boss Peter Ruis, who joined from department store John Lewis this summer.
The business, which is in recovery after closing(Clothing Display) down its failed sister chain Kew, wants to lift sales from about £77m to £100m within the next five years as it plans to open about 10 more stores by the end of 2015. The chain currently has just 61 stores, including four outlets in the US, but Ruis said there was much more potential for the future.
"This business has always done well but it's been a bit sleepy. The idea is to get to our on-par performance and then move on from there," said Ruis, who spent nine years at John Lewis where he was head of the fashion(Acrylic Watch Display) team.
Jigsaw also owns The Shop at Bluebird, a fashion boutique on London's Kings Road which sells designer labels such as Chloe and Marc by Marc Jacobs. Ruis said he wanted to do more with that brand online and look at two or three more stores in very specific locations.
Four new Jigsaw stores(Store Fixture) are planned before Christmas in Farnham in Surrey, Nottingham, Marlow in Buckinghamshire and Dulwich in south London, and they will showcase a brighter, more contemporary identity for the family-owned brand.
"We want to make it easier to have a 10-minute shopping(Shoe Display) trip experience where you can come in and fall in love with four or five pieces, rather than needing 20 to 25 minutes to find what you want," said Ruis.
For future seasons he is set to reduce the number of styles by up to 20% to make shopping easier for customers. He also wants to add more bright colours and prints.
Jigsaw, which is owned by John and Belle Robinson, saw sales increase by 10% to £60m in the year to September 2012, and made(Metal Clothing Display) a profit of £1.5m after a loss of £21m the year before as its Kew chain struggled.
The brand has been doing well online with sales rising 30% last year and by about 40% this yea
