John Lewis has suspended its click and collect operations in Norwich in the face of the pandemic.

The department store chain announced this week that customers would no longer be able to pick up their orders from their John Lewis sites.

"We've listened carefully to the clear change in tone and emphasis of the views and information shared by the UK's governments in recent days," said Andrew Murphy, executive director of operations at John Lewis said.

"While we recognise that the detail of formal guidance has not changed, we feel it is right for us - and in the best interests of our partners and customers - to take proactive steps to further enhance our Covid-security and related operational policies."

However customers can still collect orders from Waitrose - which is part of the same group - and other specified locations.

The news comes as online retail announced a boom in the past year.

Online retailer Asos has said it expects the impact of the pandemic to provide a £40 million profit boost which will help drive it towards the top of its annual targets.

The company told investors that strong lockdown demand meant retail sales rose by 23pc to £1.32 billion for the period to December 31.

Asos said half-year profits will be buoyed by “at least £40 million” as it benefited from lower customer returns.