John Lewis, the retailer regularly voted the UK’s best by customers, has a pretty friendly brand. Its mutual business model is regularly praised as one for the entire country to copy.

So you might have expected, after being awarded the status of one of the world's best retailers in Paris this week, managing director Andy Street to have some kind words to say about his French hosts.

Not quite. He says the country is "finished."

Speaking in London on Thursday, The Times reports that John Lewis' most senior executive said: “I have never been to a country more ill at ease … nothing works, and worse, nobody cares about it.”

“If you’ve got investments in French businesses, get them out quickly.”

The Times is describing his comments as tongue in cheek, but the French embassy certainly wasn’t happy with the comments, saying that “obviously many foreign businesses do not seem to share Mr. Street’s view.”

Street even slammed the quality of the plastic award he picked up in Paris as “frankly revolting.”

“If I needed any further evidence of a country in decline, here it is.”

Street has now issued an apology, according to the BBC. He said: "The remarks I made were supposed to be lighthearted views, and tongue in cheek."

"On reflection I clearly went too far. I regret the comments, and apologize unreservedly"

The rant came just weeks after France's own prime minister said the French government would be "foutu" (a colorful French phrase meaning ruined, or something ruder) if it didn't turn the country's stagnant economy around within six months.

The country is currently plagued by high unemployment that simply won't fall, and there's no sign of any significant growth or inflation. So Street might actually be right, even if he's regretting the outburst a little Friday morning.