Apple knocked out of favourite retailers top 3 as Amazon takes throne with John Lewis and Lush

Retailers ahead of Christmas — Retailers such as John Lewis are pressured to provide great customer service Getty

Apple is no longer among the top three favourite retailers of UK customers in terms of satisfaction and shopping experience. The tech retail giant saw its spot, as the third most appealing retailer for UK customers, taken by cosmetics firm Lush.

Amazon and John Lewis held on to their spots in the top three in strategy consultant firm OC&C's Retail Propositions Index. Harrods and Ikea area also among the top 10 best retailers according to UK shoppers.

OC&C surveyed some 30,000 international shoppers, which found German online shopping platform DM and Dutch Amazon-style online warehouse Bol.com were among the best customer service retailers.

Matt Coode, a partner at OC&C, said the report showed customer service should be much higher on retailers' agenda. Many shops, especially those in the UK, have suffered from the results of poor customer service or unpleasant shopping experience.

"While the best British retailers are delivering great customer service, in general, the UK is falling behind its international counterparts," Coode said. "Nearly half (46%) of US consumers have been delighted by the level of service they received in US shops, compared to under a third (32%) of UK shoppers.

"When looking specifically at customer service ratings, eight of the top 10 retailers come from the US, including employee-owned supermarket chain Publix, Trader Joe's and Apple," Coode added. "By comparison, just two British retailers, Lush and John Lewis, made the cut."

These are the top 30 favourite retailers according to UK shoppers, as listed by OC&C: