John Lewis has announced an annual staff bonus of 10 per cent – down for the third year running despite an increase in sales.

The retailer, often described as the bellwether of the High Street, reported a 24 per cent rise in annual profits before tax to £435 million, for the year ending 30 January.

However, higher pension operating costs – up 28 per cent to £245.3 million – and lower property profits meant pre-tax profits before exceptional items fell to £305.5 million, down from £343 million last year.

The 91,500 partners at John Lewis and Waitrose (where operating profit was £232.6 million), will all receive the bonus of 10 per cent of their annual salary – equivalent to five weeks’ pay. Last year the bonus was 11 per cent, compared to 15 per cent in 2014 and 17 per cent in 2013.

Sir Charlie Mayfield, chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, revealed that Click and Collect now accounted for over half of all johnlewis.com deliveries, with 70 per cent of them collected in a Waitrose branch. He also said that John Lewis had grown sales and gained market share in fashion, home and electricals, and home technology. Total online sales at John Lewis were up 17 per cent, but store sales were down 1 per cent. However, three quarters of customer purchases were made in-branch.

Mayfield added: “Partners worked especially hard this year coping with unpredictable patterns of trade and the need to keep costs tight, making these results hard won and their bonus well deserved. Taken together with the rising cost of pensions, the total combined cost we have set aside in our income statement for bonus and pensions was higher than prior years.”

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