We've waited to find the right way in and now we're moving quickly

Charlie Mayfield John Lewis

In February, John Lewis snapped up Buy.com, the US' second largest e-tailer, in order to transfer its store goods - anything from clothes to furniture to tennis racquets - onto the web.

But John Lewis is playing a game of catch-up with supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury's, which have already launched virtual shops and won a significant slice of the customer base of online shoppers.

"We've waited to find the right way in and now we're moving quickly to put into place a very compelling force to compete with other online stores," head of business development Charlie Mayfield told BBC News Online.

First-mover advantage?

The John Lewis approach is very different from rival stores which have mainly bolted on internet services to existing stores.

Ocado will use John Lewis funds to build a 300,000 square foot distribution centre in Hertfordshire, from where it will distribute food purchased online to Waitrose customers throughout London and the south east of England.

I think John Lewis has gained a lot from not being at the front of the pack

Charlie Mayfield

Both John Lewis' investments - Buy.com and Ocado - are set to open their doors later this year, although a specific date has not been revealed.

The partnership began selling a limited selection of goods through its own site last year, and also operates six online shopping services through its grocery service Waitrose Direct.

Waitrose Direct is also in line for an expansion in areas that do not overlap with Ocado's reach.

"There was a lot of hype about getting into the internet quickly," Mr Mayfield said.

"In hindsight, I think John Lewis has gained a lot from not being at the front of the pack."

John Lewis had snapped up Buy.com at a very reasonable - if undisclosed - price when the e-tailer ran into funding difficulties.

The John Lewis Partnership operates 25 department stores across the UK and 137 Waitrose supermarkets.