STAFF at the John Lewis Partnership are to receive an annual bonus equivalent to more than seven weeks' pay.

The 63,000 workers, who effectively co-own the department store and the Waitrose supermarket business, will share a pot of 106 million, an increase of 21% on a year earlier following a 24% rise in pre-tax profits to 216 million in the year to January 29.

The improved performance reflected growth in the Waitrose chain which lifted sales by10% to 3 billion and profits by 10% to 193 million.

Waitrose managing director Steve Eson said the retailer had benefited from the Sudan 1 food scare as customers had switched to fresh food. He also claimed Waitrose was picking up market share from its rivals.

"We are repositioning around quality and price and that message is resonating."

The John Lewis department store business, which operates from 26 sites, produced a sales rise of 1% despite toughening conditions in the non-food sector.

Profits at an operating level were up 8% at 212 million.

Chairman Sir Stuart Hampson said the partnership had marked its 75th anniversary in "fine style" and said that John Lewis and Waitrose were now two of the UK's strongest retail brands.

In the first five weeks of its new financial year, John Lewis said sales at Waitrose were ahead 20% on a year earlier and those at John Lewis down 1%.

The staff's bonus rate for the year is 14% of salary, up from the 12% awarded in 2003 but short of the 22% paid in 1998.

A further 81 million is being invested in the pension scheme, which John Lewis said was now the only non-contributory final salary scheme among large retail employers.

The growth at Waitrose comes after it increased selling space by 20% through the acquisition of 19 shops from Morrisons, following the Bradford-based retailer's purchase of Safeway last year.

The expansion gave Wait-rose a presence in many new regions, including Abergav-enny and Barry, where the company said shoppers had "shown their enthusiasm for the Waitrose difference".