John Lewis is a chain of high-end department stores operating throughout the United Kingdom. The chain is owned by the John Lewis Partnership, which was created by Spedan Lewis, son of the founder, John Lewis, in 1929. The first John Lewis store was opened in 1864 in Oxford Street, London. The chain's slogan is "Never Knowingly Undersold" which has been in use since 1925. There are 50 stores throughout England, Scotland and Wales, including 12 "At Home" stores, and "flexible format" stores in Exeter and York. The first John Lewis concession opened in New South Wales, Australia in November 2016. On 1 January 2008, the Oxford Street store was awarded a Royal Warrant from Her Majesty the Queen as: "suppliers of haberdashery and household goods". John Lewis Reading is also the holder of a Royal Warrant from the Queen in 2007 as suppliers of household and fancy goods. The John Lewis Christmas advert was first launched in 2007 and it has since become something of an annual tradition in British culture, and one of the signals that the countdown to Christmas has begun in the UK.