John Lewis wants to become the first UK department store retailer to offer free WiFi access to customers in its shops nationwide. It is the latest move by the retailer to offer a fully multi-channel, multi-platform shopping experience and capitalises on the boom in m-commerce.

More than 60 per cent of John Lewis customers research products online before visiting a shop to make a purchase and in-store WiFi access allows them to continue and complete that journey, accessing product information and viewing ratings and reviews to influence their purchase.

Customers will be able to surf competitors' sites to compare prices, reinforcing John Lewis's pricing promise to be 'Never Knowingly Undersold'. Staff will be trained to help customers make informed purchases and 'Digital Champions' will be in each branch to help customers to shop online.

The WiFi access from BT Openzone allows wireless connectivity to the internet for John Lewis shoppers via any wireless-enabled PC, tablet or smartphone. It is free to all customers who register once with an email address.

John Lewis is also developing an iPhone App to further enhance customers' in-store shopping experience.

John Lewis IT Director Paul Coby says: 'This is a major development in John Lewis's vision for multi-channel retail. We have made great progress with online which is now growing at between 25 per cent and 30 per cent compared to last year and amounts to circa 20 per cent of our revenue. We know our customers are mobile and want to be connected anywhere, anytime and any place. This of course means in John Lewis shops and we are committed to providing that connectivity and easy access to our fantastic assortment through our customers' smart phones, iPhones and iPads.'

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