Marks & Spencer
Encyclopedia
- "M&S" redirects here. For other uses, see M&S (disambiguation)M&S (disambiguation)M&S may stand for:*Marks & Spencer, a British department store established in 1884*M&S , a Dutch fashion retailer*Modeling & Simulation, an application of scientific modelling used in conjunction with simulation*M&S, Mud and Snow tires...
.
Marks and Spencer plc (also known as M&S or YourM&S; colloquially known as Marks and Sparks) is a British retailer headquartered in the City of Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
, London, with over 700 stores in the United Kingdom and over 300 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It specialises in the selling of clothing and luxury
Luxury good
Luxury goods are products and services that are not considered essential and associated with affluence.The concept of luxury has been present in various forms since the beginning of civilization. Its role was just as important in ancient western and eastern empires as it is in modern societies...
food products. M&S was founded in 1884 by Michael Marks
Michael Marks
Michael Marks, , was one of the two co-founders of the retail chain Marks & Spencer.-Biography:...
and Thomas Spencer in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
.
In 1998, it became the first British retailer to make a pre-tax profit of over £1 billion, though a few years later it plunged into a crisis which lasted for several years. In November 2009, it was announced that Marc Bolland
Marc Bolland
Marc Bolland is a Dutch businessman, who is the current CEO of Marks and Spencer Group plc. and has been noted to be one of the most influential people in business for 2010-Biography:...
, formerly of Morrisons
Morrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
, would take over as chief executive from Executive Chairman Stuart Rose
Stuart Rose
Sir Stuart Alan Ransom Rose is a British businessman, who was the executive chairman of the British retailer Marks & Spencer. For this role he was paid an annual salary of £1,130,000...
in early 2010; Rose remained in the role of non-executive Chairman until he was replaced by Robert Swannell in January 2011.
It is listed on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index
FTSE 100 Index
The FTSE 100 Index, also called FTSE 100, FTSE, or, informally, the footsie , is a share index of the 100 most highly capitalised UK companies listed on the London Stock Exchange....
.
Corporate history
The company was founded by a partnership between Michael MarksMichael Marks
Michael Marks, , was one of the two co-founders of the retail chain Marks & Spencer.-Biography:...
, a Litvak
Lithuanian Jews
Lithuanian Jews or Litvaks are Jews with roots in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania:...
Jew from Slonim
Slonim
Slonim is a city in Hrodna Voblast, Belarus, capital of the Slonim District. It is located at the junction of the Shchara and Isa rivers, 143 km southeast of Hrodna. The population in 2008 was 50,800.-Etymology and historical names:...
, Poland (now in Belarus), and Thomas Spencer, a cashier from Yorkshire. On his arrival in England, Marks worked for a company in Leeds, called Barran, which employed refugees (see Sir John Barran, 1st Baronet
Sir John Barran, 1st Baronet
Sir John Barran, 1st Baronet was a British clothing manufacturer and Liberal Party politician.Barran was the son of John Barran and his wife Elizabeth , and founded the firm of John Barran and Sons, clothing manufacturers, of Leeds...
). In 1884 he met Isaac Dewhurst, the owner of a Leeds warehouse, which resulted in him opening his own stall on Kirkgate Market
Leeds Kirkgate Market
Leeds Kirkgate Market is a market in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England located on Vicar Lane. It is the largest covered market in Europe. There are currently 800 stalls which attract over 100,000 visitors a week.-History:...
, in Leeds.
The next few years saw Michael Marks open market stalls in many locations around the North West of England. In 1894, Thomas Spencer invested in Marks' activities and they opened their first store, in partnership, at 20, Cheetham Hill Road, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
.
Marks and Spencer, known colloquially as "Marks and Sparks",
"Markies", or "M&S", made its reputation in the early 20th century on a policy of only selling British-made goods (a policy eventually discontinued in 2002). It entered into long term relationships with British manufacturers, and sold clothes and food under the "St Michael
St Michael
St Michael was a brand that was owned and used by Marks & Spencer from 1928 until 2000.-History:The brand was introduced by Simon Marks in 1928, after his father and co-founder of Marks & Spencer, Michael Marks. By 1950, virtually all goods were sold under the St Michael brand...
" brand, that was introduced 1928). The St Michael honours Michael Marks
Michael Marks
Michael Marks, , was one of the two co-founders of the retail chain Marks & Spencer.-Biography:...
. It also accepted the return of unwanted items, giving a full cash refund if the receipt was shown, no matter how long ago the product was purchased, which was unusual for the time. It adopted a 90-day returns policy in 2005 but on 12 April 2009 the refund policy changed once again to 35 days.
M&S staff raised £5,000 money to pay for a Spitfire fighter called The Marksman in 1941.
By 1950, virtually all goods were sold under the "St Michael" label. M&S lingerie, women's clothes and girls' school uniform were branded under the "St Margaret" label until the whole range of general merchandise became St Michael. Simon Marks
Simon Marks
Simon Marks, 1st Baron Marks of Broughton , was a British Jewish businessman.Marks was born in Leeds and educated at The Manchester Grammar School. In 1907 he inherited a number of "penny bazaars" from his father, Michael Marks, which had been established with Thomas Spencer...
, son of Michael Marks, died in 1964, after fifty-six years' service. Israel Sieff
Israel Sieff
Israel Moses Sieff, Baron Sieff was a British businessman.He was educated at Manchester Grammar School and Manchester University. One of the theatres at the Manchester Grammar School is named in his honour....
took over as Chairman and in 1968, John Salisse
John Salisse
John Joseph Salisse CBE was the company director of Marks & Spencer from 1968 to 1985. He was also a magician and author, who served The Magic Circle as their Honorary Secretary and Vice-President....
became the company Director. A cautious international expansion began with the introduction of Asian food in 1974. M&S opened stores in continental Europe in 1975 and in Ireland four years later.
The company put its main emphasis on quality, including a 1957 stocking size measuring system. But for most of its history it also had a reputation for offering fair value for money. When this reputation began to waver, it encountered serious difficulties. Arguably, M&S has historically been an iconic retailer of 'British Quality Goods'.
The uncompromising attitude towards customer relations was summarised by the 1953 slogan: "The customer is always and completely right!".
Energy efficiency was improved by the addition of thermostatically controlled refrigerators in 1963.
M&S has sold Christmas cake
Christmas cake
Christmas cake is a type of fruitcake served at Christmas time in the UK, Ireland, Japan, Philippines and many Commonwealth countries.A Christmas cake may be light or dark, crumbly-moist to sticky-wet, spongy to heavy, leavened or unleavened, shaped round, square or oblong as whole cakes, fairy...
s and Christmas pudding
Christmas pudding
Christmas pudding is a pudding traditionally served on Christmas Day . It has its origins in medieval England, and is sometimes known as plum pudding or plum duff, though this can also refer to other kinds of boiled pudding involving dried fruit.-Basics:Many households have their own recipe for...
s since 1958. In an effort to improve the quality of their Swiss roll
Swiss roll
A Swiss roll or jelly roll is a type of sponge cake roll. The thin cake is made of eggs, flour and sugar and baked in a very shallow rectangular baking tray, called a sheet pan. The cake is removed from the pan and spread with jam or buttercream, rolled up, and served in circular slices.The...
s, they hired the food expert Nat Goldberg, who made a major improvement across their entire cake range, which had lost the public's favour a few years earlier. As a later measure to improve food quality food labelling was improved and "sell by dates" were phased in between 1970 and 1972.
Smoking was banned from all M&S shops in 1959 because of the fire hazards it posed. It later became a permanent rule after concerns were raised by asthmatics about their health.
All international shops are operated under franchise, with the exception of those in the Republic of Ireland and Hong Kong which remain in company ownership.
The first M&S shop in central Asia was built in Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
in the 1960s but was later shut down.
M&S expanded into Canada in 1973, and at one point had forty seven stores across Canada. Despite various efforts to improve its image, the chain was never able to move beyond its reputation there as a stodgy retailer, one that catered primarily to senior citizens and expatriate Britons. The shops in Canada were smaller than British outlets, and did not carry the same selection. In the late 1990s, further efforts were made to modernise them and also expand the customer base. Unprofitable locations were closed. Nonetheless, the Canadian operations continued to lose money, and the last 38 shops in Canada were closed in 1999.
Expansion into France began with shops opening in Paris at Boulevard Haussmann
Boulevard Haussmann
Boulevard Haussmann, running from the 8th to the 9th arrondissement,is one of the wide tree-lined boulevards created in Paris during the Second French Empire by Baron Haussmann, with enthusiastic support from Napoleon III....
and Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
in 1975, followed by a second Paris shop at Rosny 2 in 1977. Further expansion into other French and Belgian cities followed into the 1980s. Although the Paris shops remained popular and profitable, the whole of the Western European operation did not fare as well and eighteen shops were sold in 2001. However in April 2011, M&S has changed directions again with an announcement to reopen a store that will not only sell clothing but food as well. In addition the group will also open several food outlets throughout the French capital. The first branch opened on 24 November 2011 at the Champs Elysées in a ceremony attended by company CEO Marc Bolland
Marc Bolland
Marc Bolland is a Dutch businessman, who is the current CEO of Marks and Spencer Group plc. and has been noted to be one of the most influential people in business for 2010-Biography:...
, model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley
Rosie Alice Huntington-Whiteley is an English model and actress, best known for her work for lingerie retailer Victoria's Secret and Burberry, and also for her role as Carly Spencer in the 2011 film Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the third installment in the Transformers film series.-Early life...
and British Ambassador to France, Sir Peter Westmacott
Peter Westmacott
Sir Peter John Westmacott, KCMG, LVO is a senior British diplomat, currently serving as HM Ambassador to the French Republic....
. The Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
reported that 1,000 customers queued outside for over 2 hours at the opening of the 1,400 sq metre store.
In 1988, the company acquired Brooks Brothers
Brooks Brothers
Brooks Brothers is the oldest men's clothier chain in the United States. Founded in 1818 as a family business, the privately owned company is now owned by Retail Brand Alliance, also features clothing for women, and is headquartered on Madison Avenue in Manhattan, New York City.-History:On April 7,...
, an American clothing company and Kings Super Markets
Kings Super Markets
Kings Super Markets is a supermarket chain headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey, with 24 upscale grocery stores in northern New Jersey and one in New York. Founded in 1936, Kings was bought by UK retailer Marks & Spencer in 1988 and later sold to a US investor group consisting of Angelo, Gordon...
, a US food chain. They were subsequently sold off, in 2001 and 2006 respectively.
M&S's profits peaked in financial year 1997/1998. At the time it was seen as a continuing success story, but with hindsight it is considered that during Sir Richard Greenbury
Richard Greenbury
Sir Richard Greenbury was chairman and chief executive of the British retailer Marks and Spencer from 1988 to 1999. During his tenure the company continued to grow until its profits peaked in 1997 and 1998, when it was the second most profitable retailer in the world after Wal-Mart, and the ninth...
's tenure as head of the company, profit margins were pushed to untenable levels, and the loyalty of its customers was seriously eroded. The rising cost of using British suppliers was also a burden, as rival retailers increasingly imported their goods from low-cost countries, but M&S's belated switch to overseas suppliers undermined a core part of its appeal to the public. Another factor was the company's refusal until 2001 to accept any credit cards except its own chargecard.
These factors combined to plunge M&S into a sudden slump, which took the company, its shareholders, who included hundreds of thousands of small investors, and nearly all retail analysts and business journalists, by surprise. The company's share price fell by more than two thirds, and its profits fell from more than a billion pounds in 1997 and 1998 to £145 million in the year ended 31 March 2001.
Marks & Spencer launched an online shopping service in 1999.
In 2001, with changes in its business focus such as accepting credit cards, the introduction of the "Per Una" clothing range designed by George Davies
George Davies (retailer)
George Davies , is an English fashion designer and retailer.Davis headed Next from its creation in the 1980s, before moving on to start the fashion label 'George at Asda' in the 1990s...
, accompanied by a redesign of its underlying business model, profits recovered somewhat and M&S recovered some of its market share, but it was soon evident that problems remained.
In 2004, M&S was in the throes of an attempted takeover by Arcadia Group
Arcadia Group
The Arcadia Group Limited a British company that owns the high street clothing retailers Burton, Dorothy Perkins, Evans, Miss Selfridge, Topman, Topshop, Wallis and BHS, and the out of town chain Outfit, which sells lines from the other group chains...
& BHS boss, Philip Green
Philip Green
Sir Philip Green is a British businessman. Green was born into a Jewish family in 1952, beginning as a businessman at the age of 15. The first and last quoted company Green took lead of was "Amber Day", from which he stepped down as CEO and Chairman in 1992...
. On 12 July a recovery plan was announced which would involve selling off the financial services business to HSBC Bank plc
HSBC Bank (Europe)
HSBC Bank plc is one of the four major clearing banks in the United Kingdom and is a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings. The business ranges from the traditional High Street roles of personal finance and commercial banking, to private banking, consumer finance as well as corporate and...
, buying control of the Per Una range, closing the Gateshead
Gateshead
Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside...
Lifestore and stopping the expansion of its Simply Food line of shops. Philip Green
Philip Green
Sir Philip Green is a British businessman. Green was born into a Jewish family in 1952, beginning as a businessman at the age of 15. The first and last quoted company Green took lead of was "Amber Day", from which he stepped down as CEO and Chairman in 1992...
withdrew his takeover bid after failing to get sufficient backing from shareholders.
In February 2007, M&S announced the opening of the world's largest M&S shop outside the UK at Dubai Festival City
Dubai Festival City
Dubai Festival City is a large residential, business and entertainment development in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Touted as a "city-within-a-city", Dubai Festival City is the Middle East's largest mixed-use development: all elements for work, living, and leisure will be contained...
.
M&S is currently ranked 21 in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
' "Top 100 Graduate Employers 2010–11".
On 2 October 2008, M&S opened its first mainland China shop in Shanghai. Problems with the supply chain for the first few months of opening led Stuart Rose, M&S chairman, to describe failures in "basic shopkeeping".
The upmarket Zandra Rhodes collection, modelled and made by the British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes
Zandra Rhodes
Zandra Rhodes, CBE, RDI, is an English fashion designer.Zandra Rhodes was introduced to the world of fashion by her mother, who was a fitter in a Paris fashion house and a teacher at Medway College of Art, now the University for the Creative Arts. Rhodes studied first at Medway and then at the...
, CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
/RDI
Royal Designers for Industry
Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustained excellence in aesthetic and efficient design for...
was introduced in to the bigger shops by late 2009, but was discontinued in early 2010.
A 2010 business audit
Audit
The general definition of an audit is an evaluation of a person, organization, system, process, enterprise, project or product. The term most commonly refers to audits in accounting, but similar concepts also exist in project management, quality management, and energy conservation.- Accounting...
revealed that Per Una was a rather successful and popular brand, as was the new children's Plus Fit and 'Living the dream' lines.
Based on Verdict Research
Verdict Research
Verdict Research is a United Kingdom-based company founded by retail analyst Richard Hyman in 1984. It conducts research into all aspects of retailing and consumers producing both syndicated publications and tailored consulting projects and is headquartered in London.Verdict specialises in analysis...
in 2011, Mark & Spencer Group Plc has market share of 23 percent for women aged 55 to 64, but drop significantly to 12.1 percent for women a decade younger as they seek more fashionable frocks and workwear.
Financial performance
M&S is listed on the London Stock ExchangeLondon Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index
FTSE 100 Index
The FTSE 100 Index, also called FTSE 100, FTSE, or, informally, the footsie , is a share index of the 100 most highly capitalised UK companies listed on the London Stock Exchange....
.
After fostering significant growth in recent years, mid-2008 saw share prices plunge to well under half their value of twelve months before, as M&S struggled to cope with more conservative shoppers in the credit crunch
Credit crunch
A credit crunch is a reduction in the general availability of loans or a sudden tightening of the conditions required to obtain a loan from the banks. A credit crunch generally involves a reduction in the availability of credit independent of a rise in official interest rates...
. M & S made a £298,000,000 profit in the half year up to September 2009 M and S also showed a pre-tax profit of £632,500,000 for the 52 weeks to 27 March 2010
The winter snowfalls has cost Marks & Spencer between roughly £50m and £55m in lost sales over the Christmas of 2010, after enjoying a strong third quarter, when same-store sales rose 2.8% despite the impact of the snow. M&S has attracted a growing tranche of shoppers with a range value for money priced offers, but the firm was cautious about the future and feared another year of economic uncertainty as the government austerity measures, rising crime, homlessness, swine flu
Swine flu
Swine influenza, also called pig influenza, swine flu, hog flu and pig flu, is an infection by any one of several types of swine influenza virus. Swine influenza virus or S-OIV is any strain of the influenza family of viruses that is endemic in pigs...
, budget cuts, public sector job losses and rising taxes all imploded consumer spending
Consumer spending
Consumer spending or consumer demand or consumption is also known as personal consumption expenditure. It is the largest part of aggregate demand or effective demand at the macroeconomic level...
money.
Until 1999 M&S's financial year ended on 31 March. Since then, the company has changed to reporting for 52 or 53 week periods, ending on variable dates.
Look Behind the Label
In 2006, the Look Behind the Label marketing campaign was introduced. The aim of this campaign was to highlight to customers the various ethical and environmentally friendly aspects of the production and sourcing methods engaged in by M&S including: Fairtrade products, sustainable fishing and environmentally friendly textile dyes. All coffee and tea sold in M&S stores is now Fairtrade. in addition the company offers clothing lines made from Fairtrade Cotton in selected departments.At Christmas the company introduces a range of food products to support the housing charity Shelter
Shelter (charity)
Shelter is a registered charity in England and Scotland that campaigns to end homelessness and bad housing. It gives advice, information and advocacy to people in need, and tackles the root causes of bad housing by lobbying government and local authorities for new laws and policies to improve the...
predominantly in the food to go range including a range of seasonal Christmas sandwiches.
Plan A
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
of the business within 5 years and expected to cost £200 million.
The plan covers "100 commitments over 5 years to address the key social and environmental challenges facing M&S today and in the future" with the tag-line "Because there is no Plan B". The commitments span five themes: climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
, waste
Waste
Waste is unwanted or useless materials. In biology, waste is any of the many unwanted substances or toxins that are expelled from living organisms, metabolic waste; such as urea, sweat or feces. Litter is waste which has been disposed of improperly...
, sustainable raw materials, 'fair partnership' and health, with the aim that, by 2012, it will:
- Become carbon neutral
- Send no waste to landfill
- Extend sustainable sourcing
- Help improve the lives of people in their supply chain
- Help customers and employees live a healthier life-style
Despite an 18% fall in the share price in January 2008, following publication of their latest trading statement, the company confirmed that they would be continuing with the plan, saying that there were 'compelling commercial — as well as moral — reasons to do so'.
The now iconic brown, reusable, hessian bag was first introduced in 2007 as an early part of this plan. It is hoped that this will reduce the use of plastic carrier bags over the next few years.
May 2008 saw the introduction of the 5p carrier bag scheme at M&S stores, with customers now paying 5p per standard sized vest carrier bag for food purchases. This implementation was brought about through the Plan A scheme, to try to discourage use of the traditional plastic bag. All profits from the sale of food bags used to go to Groundwork UK.
In June 2011, M&S launched the Forever Fish campaign to promote the protection of Marine Wildlife in the UK. As of the end of June 2011, all profits from the sale of food bags now go to this charity.
In becoming carbon neutral the company has committed to only use carbon offset
Carbon offset
A carbon offset is a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for or to offset an emission made elsewhere....
ting as a last resort, restricted to cases "where it is required by government or where the technology for green air or road transport will not be available for the foreseeable future".
As of August 2008, M&S had three wind turbines in operation, one at Methlick
Methlick
Methlick is a village in the Formartine area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, situated on the River Ythan north-west of Ellon.- Services :Methlick is served by a general store, a garage and hardware store, one hotel and a village hall...
and two near Strichen
Strichen
Strichen is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It sits on the A981, connecting it to New Deer to the southwest and Fraserburgh to the north-northeast, and the B9093, connecting it to New Pitsligo about four miles due west. The village got its name from Lord Strichen. It is situated on the River...
, generating enough power to supply three stores via the National Grid. In April 2009 the company began purchasing 2.6 TWh
TWH
TWH or twh could refer to:*Tennessee Walking Horse, a breed of horse* Toronto Western Hospital, a hospital in Toronto, Canada* TWH Bus & Coach, a bus company in Romford, England* Terrawatt-hour, measure of electrical energy, 1012 watt-hours...
of renewable energy (wind and hydroelectric) from Npower
Npower (UK)
RWE Npower plc is a UK-based electricity and gas supply generation company, formerly known as Innogy plc. As Innogy plc it was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index...
, enough to power all Marks & Spencer stores and offices in England and Wales.
Company chairman Sir Stuart Rose is personally committed to further promoting green issues and the recycling of plastic bottles. He has also pledged to reduce non-glass wastage by 25% and plastic carrier bag usage by 33% in the near future.
Charity work
M&S has sold a wide range of charitable women's clothes for Breakthrough Breast CancerBreakthrough Breast Cancer
Breakthrough Breast Cancer is a United Kingdom charity committed to fighting breast cancer through research, campaigning and education. Its vision is "to work for a future free from the fear of breast cancer".-History:...
for many years and the Ashbourne
Ashbourne, Derbyshire
Ashbourne is a small market town in the Derbyshire Dales, England. It has a population of 10,302.The town advertises itself as 'The Gateway to Dovedale'.- Local customs :...
store collected a total of £2,000 for a local Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
hospital's new ECG machine in 2010. Other charities are also represented at individual stores from time to time.
Support for Israel
Marks & Spencer has been criticised by pro-Palestinian and left wing groups over its past support for ZionismZionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
and for fruit trading with the state of Israel, a cause which it had promoted since its inception. For instance, prior to Israel's creation, various senior figures in the company advocated Zionist ideas, with Israel Sieff, the group’s chairman, advocating mass deportation in 1941 by stating that in order to found a Zionist state, "large sections of the Arab population of Palestine should be transplanted to Iraq and other Middle Eastern states." This moral support continued until the 1980s. In his 1990 memoir, M&S' former chairman, Marcus Sieff (who was chairman from 1974 until 1984), wrote "Another example of the demand for quality and value has been the development over the past twelve years of the firm Delta, which was established in Carmiel, in northern Galilee in Israel, thirteen years ago by a remarkable industrial leader, Dov Lautman. The plant initially manufactured men’s briefs, and Mr Lautman wished to export to Marks & Spencer. Although it has been Marks & Spencer's policy to encourage economic development in Israel, it was on the basis that a product of similar value and quality could not be found in the United Kingdom…Of Dov Lautman’s three thousand employees about one thousand one hundred are Jewish, one thousand Israeli Arabs and the rest Druse. He treats all his employees equally and in this expanding business there is much scope for promotion. He has made it a rule that promotion goes to whoever is the most suitable for it, Arab, Jew or Druse. During the sixteen months in which the Arab uprisings in Gaza and the West Bank have taken place up to the time of writing, no Israeli Arab working at Delta has been absent from on that account." This has led to various pressure groups calling for boycotts of M&S goods, and demonstrations to be held outside of M&S shops. In one case, a Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
based shop was vandalised with pro-Palestinian and anti-Zionist graffiti.
The company states that currently 'We deal with politicians and officials, in government and opposition. We do not support or align ourselves to political parties or make no political donations '.
Cut flowers
War on WantWar on Want
War on Want is an anti-poverty charity based in London, England. It seeks to highlight the needs of poverty-stricken areas around the world and lobbies governments and international agencies to tackle problems as well as raising public awareness of the concerns of developing nations while...
criticised M&S, along with Tesco
Tesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
and Sainsbury's, in its Growing Pains report for using its influence to squeeze overseas suppliers to constantly reduce their costs while boosting their own profits.
Comprehensive Spending Review
In October 2010, Chairman Sir Stuart Rose was a signatory to a controversial letter to The Daily Telegraph which claimed that "The private sector should be more than capable of generating additional jobs to replace those lost in the public sector, and the redeployment of people to more productive activities will improve economic performance, so generating more employment opportunities", despite recent job cuts of 1,000 staff. This prompted calls for a boycott of Marks & Spencer, as well as the companies represented by the other signatories to the letter.Change of historic logo
During the height of the company's troubles at the beginning of the 21st century, the St Michael brand used as the selling label for all M&S products was discontinued in favour of Marks & Spencer and a new logo in the OptimaOptima
Optima is a humanist sans-serif typeface designed by Hermann Zapf between 1952 and 1955 for the D. Stempel AG foundry, Frankfurt, Germany.-Characteristics:...
typeface was introduced and began to appear in place of St Michael on product packaging. The same logo was also rolled out across store fascias and carrier bags. The St Michael name was subsequently adopted as a 'quality guarantee' and appeared as the St Michael Quality Promise on the back of food products, on the side of delivery vehicles and on in-store ordering receipts. This has since been phased out, although the store-ordering receipts given to customers still feature this 'seal of approval' on the bottom.
Your M&S
When Steve Sharp joined as marketing director in 2004, after being hired by new Chief Executive Sir Stuart Rose, he introduced a new promotional brand under the Your M&S banner, with a corresponding logo. This has now become the company's main brand in its advertising, online presence and in-store merchandising. The clean fonts and modern colours of the new image are somewhat incongruous alongside the traditional M&S signage and associated fittings that still adorn many of the unmodernised 'core' stores themselves. The only thing in common with the former design is the use of M&S traditional green in the ampersandAmpersand
An ampersand is a logogram representing the conjunction word "and". The symbol is a ligature of the letters in et, Latin for "and".-Etymology:...
of the new logo. In 2007, the same typeface used for the new M&S logo was adopted to replace the Optima logo used on product packaging and store fascias since 2000. This new logo is also beginning to appear on new-style sewn in clothing labels and presented in its linear, non-stacked form, complete with lime-green ampersand.
High profile media campaigns
M&S has always run newspaper and/or Magazine ads since the early 1950s, but the introduction of some famous stars such as TwiggyTwiggy
Lesley Lawson née Hornby known as Twiggy is an English model, actress, and singer. In the early-1960s she became a prominent British teenage model of swinging sixties London with others such as Penelope Tree....
and David Jason
David Jason
Sir David John White, OBE , better known by his stage name David Jason, is an English BAFTA award-winning actor. He is best known as the main character Derek "Del Boy" Trotter on the BBC sit-com Only Fools and Horses from 1981, the voice of Mr Toad in The Wind In The Willows and as detective Jack...
in various TV ads has helped raise the company's profile. Twiggy first appeared in 1967, returning later in 1995 and 2005. Anne Grierson first featured in adverts during the late 1950s and most of the 1960s. In later years, Erin O'Connor
Erin O'Connor
-Early life:Erin O'Connor was born and brought up in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, England and went to Brownhills Community School . She was raised Catholic and her father is from Ballycastle, Northern Ireland...
, Myleene Klass
Myleene Klass
Myleene Angela Quinn is an English singer, pianist, media personality and occasional model. She was formerly a member of the defunct British pop band Hear'Say.-Early life:...
, Tanja Nadjila, Peter Kay, David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...
, Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
, Claudia Schiffer
Claudia Schiffer
Claudia Schiffer is a German model and occasional actress, who reached the peak of her popularity during the 1990s, initially due to her resemblance to Brigitte Bardot. Schiffer is one of the world's most successful models, having appeared on over 500 magazine covers...
, Helena Christensen
Helena Christensen
Helena Christensen is a Danish fashion model, Victoria's Secret Angel, beauty queen, and photographer. She has also served as creative director for Nylon magazine, designed clothing, and supported funding for breast cancer organizations and other charities.-Early life:Christensen was born in...
, Tatjana Patitz
Tatjana Patitz
Tatjana Patitz is a German model and actress who rose to international prominence in the 1980s and 1990s, representing top fashion designers, campaigns, and collections, and who continues to model today.-Modelling career:...
, Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon is an English fashion model, television personality and presenter. She was the host of the reality television show Britain's Next Top Model from 2006 until 2009...
, Dannii Minogue
Dannii Minogue
Danielle Jane "Dannii" Minogue is an Australian singer-songwriter, actress, television personality, radio personality, fashion designer and model...
, VV Brown
VV Brown
Vanessa Brown , also known as VV Brown, is an English singer, songwriter, model, and producer signed to Island Records in the United Kingdom and to Universal Republic Records and Capitol Records in the United States...
and Carmen Kass
Carmen Kass
-Early life:Kass was born in Tallinn, Estonia and grew up in Mäo village, near Paide, the capital of Järva County. Kass, her sister and brother were raised only by their mother Koidu Põder.-Modeling:...
have also featured in a few ads, along with many others.
John Sergeant
John Sergeant (journalist)
John Sergeant is a British television and radio journalist and broadcaster.-Biography:The son of a missionary who was also a distinguished linguist, Sergeant is of Russian Jewish origin on his mother's side. Sergeant's early life meant that he followed his father's work, and was raised in...
, David Jason and Joanna Lumley
Joanna Lumley
Joanna Lamond Lumley, OBE, FRGS is a British actress, voice-over artist, former-model and author, best known for her roles in British television series Absolutely Fabulous portraying Edina Monsoon's best friend, Patsy Stone, as well as parts in The New Avengers, Sapphire & Steel, and Sensitive...
have either appeared in or voiced over adverts since 2008.
The new look has been instrumental in the company's recent resurgence, particularly with the success of a new clothing campaign featuring the celebrated model, Twiggy
Twiggy
Lesley Lawson née Hornby known as Twiggy is an English model, actress, and singer. In the early-1960s she became a prominent British teenage model of swinging sixties London with others such as Penelope Tree....
, and younger models associated with the bohemian styles of 2005–6, and the new TV ad campaign for its food range. These adverts have the tag-line This is not just food, this is M&S food and feature slow motion, close-up footage of various food products, described in a sultry voiceover
VoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
by Dervla Kirwan
Dervla Kirwan
Dervla Kirwan is an Irish actress famous for roles in British television shows such as Ballykissangel and Goodnight Sweetheart...
, to an enticing instrumental song — most notably Fleetwood Mac's "Albatross
Albatross
Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellariids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes . They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific...
" as well as Santana
Santana (band)
Santana is a rock band based around guitarist Carlos Santana and founded in the late 1960s. It first came to public attention after their performing the song "Soul Sacrifice" at the Woodstock Festival in 1969, when their Latin rock provided a contrast to other acts on the bill...
's "Samba Pa Ti", Groove Armada
Groove Armada
Groove Armada is an English electronic music duo from London, England comprising Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They are perhaps best known for their singles "I See You Baby" and "Superstylin'"...
's "At the River
At the River
"At the River" is a song by English electronica duo Groove Armada. It was released as a single in 1997 on 7" vinyl, limited to 500 copies. The song was later added to the track listing of their second album, Vertigo, released in April 1999. On 26 July 1999, the single was re-released on 12" and CD...
" or Spandau Ballet
Spandau Ballet
Spandau Ballet are a British band formed in London in the late 1970s. Initially inspired by, and an integral part of, the New Romantic fashion, their music has featured a mixture of funk, jazz, soul and synthpop. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s, achieving ten Top Ten singles...
's "True". These adverts have been referred to by both fans and critics as being food porn
Food porn
Food porn is a glamourised spectacular visual presentation of cooking or eating in advertisements, infomercials, cooking shows or other visual media, foods boasting a high fat and calorie content, exotic dishes that arouse a desire to eat or the glorification of food as a substitute for sex...
, with a number of other companies copying the idea, such as Aldi
ALDI
ALDI Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG, doing business as ', short for "Albrecht Discount", is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany...
and, most recently, Waitrose
Waitrose
Waitrose Limited is an upmarket chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom and is the food division of the British retailer and worker co-operative the John Lewis Partnership. Its head office is in Bracknell, Berkshire, England...
.
The 2009 TV advertising campaign drew complaints, leading to national press coverage, regarding sexism.
It was confirmed that Minogue would be one of the new faces of Marks and Spencer. She filmed her first commercial in South Africa, which featured Cheryl Lynn
Cheryl Lynn
Lynda Cheryl Smith , known better by her professional name Cheryl Lynn, is a female African-American disco, R&B and soul singer known best for her 1978 disco song, "Got to Be Real".-Early career:...
's Got To Be Real
Got To Be Real
"Got to Be Real" is a 1978 disco song by Cheryl Lynn from her self-titled album. The song, which was Lynn's debut single, was penned by David Paich, David Foster, and Lynn, and has since been called one of the defining moments in disco. Along with the tracks, "Star Love" and "You Saved My Day",...
, for their Spring campaign that aired 24 March 2010. She starred alongside Twiggy
Twiggy
Lesley Lawson née Hornby known as Twiggy is an English model, actress, and singer. In the early-1960s she became a prominent British teenage model of swinging sixties London with others such as Penelope Tree....
, Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon is an English fashion model, television personality and presenter. She was the host of the reality television show Britain's Next Top Model from 2006 until 2009...
, VV Brown
VV Brown
Vanessa Brown , also known as VV Brown, is an English singer, songwriter, model, and producer signed to Island Records in the United Kingdom and to Universal Republic Records and Capitol Records in the United States...
and Ana Beatriz Barros
Ana Beatriz Barros
Ana Beatriz Barros is a Brazilian model known for her work with Guess?, bebe, Victoria's Secret, Chanel cosmetics, and Jennifer Lopez's JLO fashion line.-Early life and family:...
. While Minogue did not feature in the Autumn ad due to her pregnancy, she did appear in the Christmas ad with Peter Kay
Peter Kay
Peter John Kay is an English comedian, writer, actor, director and producer. His work includes That Peter Kay Thing , Phoenix Nights , Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere , Britain's Got the Pop Factor... and other independent productions which have included two sell out tours.-Early career:Peter Kay...
which featured the Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
You Should Be Dancing
You Should Be Dancing
"You Should Be Dancing" is a single by the Bee Gees, from the album, Children of the World, in 1976. The single hit number one for one week on the American Billboard Hot 100, number one for seven weeks on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart, and in July the same year, reached number five on the UK...
Dannii travelled to Miami, Florida in January 2011 to shoot the commercial for M&S for the 2011 Spring collection, prior to her contractual termination.
New store format
A new store format designed by Urban Salon Architects has won much praise and is in the process of being rolled out across all stores, with a majority of stores being completed by the end of 2008.Brighter look
The full new look makeover is a reworking of store design, including the gutting of old stores, and installation of a brighter, more spacious, modern and contemporary design, replacing carpets and laminate floors with white tile throughout (black tile in Foods, apart from in the Leamington high street store) thus opening the floor instead of having pathways, having new contemporary white mannequins in new designs and poses, new displays and kit such as new design clothing rails, avant garde product stands (formerly known as "Lutons"), display and product walls, window display styles, larger fitting rooms, glass walls, till points, and general total updating of decals, signage, equipment (including smaller CCTV dome cameras), and lighting.
Self check-outs
M&S introduced self check-out tills in the food-halls of a small number of trial stores in 2002. Self check-out was implemented in the general merchandise sections in three trial stores in 2006 and roll-out to flagship stores is in progress.Product line history
St Michael was a brand that was owned and used by Marks & Spencer from 1928 until 2000.The brand was introduced by Simon Marks
Simon Marks
Simon Marks, 1st Baron Marks of Broughton , was a British Jewish businessman.Marks was born in Leeds and educated at The Manchester Grammar School. In 1907 he inherited a number of "penny bazaars" from his father, Michael Marks, which had been established with Thomas Spencer...
in 1928, after his father and co-founder of Marks & Spencer, Michael Marks
Michael Marks
Michael Marks, , was one of the two co-founders of the retail chain Marks & Spencer.-Biography:...
. By 1950, virtually all goods were sold under the St Michael brand. M&S lingerie, women's clothing and girls' uniform were branded under the St Margaret brand, until the whole range of general merchandise became St Michael.
Marks & Spencer were selling clothes under the St Margaret and St Michael label by the mid-1950s and launched their school uniforms in the early 1950s. The synthetic fibre Tricell was first used in 1957 and lasted until the 1970s. and another synthetic fibre called Coutelle was first launched, nationally, by Marks & Spencer during 1960 and also lasted well in to the 1970s. Machine washable wool first appeared in 1972 and Lycra hosiery first came in during 1986.
M&S launched their own brands of domestic products, such as washing powder and aluminium foil
Aluminium foil
Aluminium foil is aluminium prepared in thin metal leaves, with a thickness less than , thinner gauges down to are also commonly used. In the USA, foils are commonly gauged in mils. Standard household foil is typically thick and heavy duty household foil is typically .The foil is pliable, and...
in 1972, under the brand name of 'House-care'.
In 2000, Marks & Spencer dropped the St Michael brand, and replacing it with the Marks & Spencer brand. The St Michael name was subsequently adopted as a 'quality guarantee' and appeared as the St Michael Quality Promise on the back of food products, on the side of delivery vehicles and on in-store ordering receipts. The St Michael Quality Promise was phased out a few years ago Marks & Spencer.
Marks & Spencer were selling clothes under the St Margaret and St Michael
St Michael
St Michael was a brand that was owned and used by Marks & Spencer from 1928 until 2000.-History:The brand was introduced by Simon Marks in 1928, after his father and co-founder of Marks & Spencer, Michael Marks. By 1950, virtually all goods were sold under the St Michael brand...
label by the mid-1950s and launched their school uniforms in the early 1950s, but would be scrapped in the year 2000 as part of the corporate modernisation plan, when brands such as Autograph were launched.
M&S's relatively successful interior design 'Home' brand was launched in 2005 and featured products like vases, furniture and beds.
Boil-in-the-bag and sachet meals were first pioneered by M&S in 1972 and the award winning Gastropub food range was launched in 2004. The 'Melting middle chocolate pudding' campaign of 2005 has led to a remarkable 3,000% rise in chocolate pudding sales, something that has not recurred since. The Percy Pigs
Percy pigs
Percy Pig is a brand of pig-shaped raspberry,strawberry, cherry and grape-flavoured confectionery products made under licence in Germany for Marks & Spencer. They first appeared in stores in the mid-nineties. The name "Percy Pigs" has now been trademarked by Marks and Spencer...
sweets were first created in 1995 and the billionth "Percy Pig" sweet was sold by the October 2007.
Per Una
Next (retailer)
Next plc is a British retailer marketing clothing, footwear, accessories and home products with its headquarters in Enderby, Leicestershire, England. The company has over 550 stores throughout the UK and the Republic of Ireland, and 50 franchise branches in Europe, Asia and the Middle East...
founder George Davies
George Davies (retailer)
George Davies , is an English fashion designer and retailer.Davis headed Next from its creation in the 1980s, before moving on to start the fashion label 'George at Asda' in the 1990s...
with the contribution of Julie Strang.
The Per Una brand has been a major success for the company, and in October 2004, M&S bought the brand in a £125 million, two-year service contract with George Davies. Mr Davies was to stay on for at least two years to run the company, with 12 months notice required if he wished to leave.
The teenagers' line called Per Una Due was launched in early 2004, but sales were poor and it was discontinued in the May 2004, whilst the adult lines had flourished by 2010.
Current M & S product lines
- Womenswear
- Personal (women's) fit http://www.marksandspencer.com/Personalised-Fit-Womens/b/1364658031
- Summer classics
- Classic collection
- Seasonal classics
- Beachwear
- Sportswear
- The Indigo collection
- Portfolio
- Per Una
- Buy me now or lose me for ever- limited editions: their discounted product line.
- Breakthrough Breast Cancer: M&S markets charitable clothes for Breakthrough Breast Cancer.
- Lingerie and hosiery
- Shoes
- Childrenswear
- Babywear
- Percy Pig and Colin Caterpillar sweets
- Menswear
- Perfect seasonal clothes
- Cosmetics and Perfumes
- Homeware
- Technology
- Food and drink
- 'Gastropub' are ready mealTV dinnerA TV dinner is a prepackaged frozen or chilled meal that usually comes as an individual portion...
s inspired by pub cuisine for home cooking It got a 'Golden pub-meal commendation' in 2005. 'Food to go' was a grab bagGrab bagGrab bag may mean* Bug-out bag or Survival kit, a portable collection of emergency supplies* Party favor gift bags* Pot-Pourri * Walkers slightly larger than normal packet of crisps.* The theme song of Duke Nukem 3D...
or packed lunchPacked lunchthumb|A typical American bagged lunchthumb|[[Bento]] packed lunchA packed lunch is a lunch prepared at home and carried to be eaten somewhere else, such as school, a workplace, or at an outing...
ready cooked meal that enveloped out of the popular food range in early 2010. - Alcohol: M&S has an extensive wine and beer range, which was first started in 1973. In 2006 and 2007, M&S entered over a hundred of its own wines into two wine competitions, The Decanter World Wine AwardsDecanter (magazine)Decanter is an up market magazine on wine and spirits, published in over 90 countries on a monthly basis. The magazine content includes news from the industry, vintage guides and wine recommendations. Decanter organizes the annual Decanter World Wine Awards.-Wine Ratings:Decanter employs a 1 to 5...
and The International Wine ChallengeInternational Wine ChallengeThe International Wine Challenge is an annual wine competition. The International Wine Challenge assesses every wine blind and judges each for its faithfulness to variety, region and vintage. Every wine is assessed independently of its price...
. Both years, almost every wine won an award, ranging from the 2005 Secano Pinot Noir, Leyda Valley, Chile (Best Pinot Noir in the world for under £10) to the Rosada Cava (Commended). - Gift shop/Christmas gift shop
- M&S Money – Marks and Spencer Financial Services
- M&S Energy – Electricity & Gas (in partnership with Scottish & Southern) and Home Insulation
- The company also began to sell other branded goods like Kellogg's Corn Flakes in November 2008. however, the business as of 2011 is reviewing it's branded food offering (those lines which aren't M&S branded) due to comparatively poor uptake of these lines as well as potentially de-tracting from the newly introduced "Only at..." tagline. The business will begin winding down the branded offering with the aim of only offering customers branded lines which it doesn't currently have an M&S brand alternative to.
- Plus Fit- Was launched in selected stores during July 2010 for overweight children to wear. It has proven to be a popular line.
- The children’s (online only) ‘Living the Dream’ range of Lewis HamiltonLewis HamiltonLewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, MBE is a British Formula One racing driver from England, currently racing for the McLaren team. He was the Formula One World Champion.Hamilton was born in Stevenage, Hertfordshire...
memorabilia and merchandise was launched in September 2009. Merchandise also relating to fellow racing driver Jenson ButtonJenson ButtonJenson Alexander Lyons Button MBE is a British Formula One driver currently signed to McLaren. He was the 2009 World Drivers' Champion.Button began karting at the age of eight and achieved early success, before progressing to car racing in the British Formula Ford Championship and the British...
was added to the range during April 2010.
Online services
Products could be ordered online since since the mid 2000s, in response to some like TescoTesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
launching their pioneering Tesco.com
Tesco.com
Tesco.com is an electronic commerce website operated by Tesco. As well as being the world's largest online grocery retailer, it offers a wide range of other products, including electronic goods, books, broadband and financial services....
home shopping delivery service in the early 2000s. Both Tesco, M&S and others are expanding rapidly in to this new niche market.
M&S TV is a online TV station to advertise goods.
The online flower service was accused of unfair trading and using Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
to piggy-back advertise on online searches aimed at Interflora
Interflora
Interflora is the most commonly used name for a group of organisations worldwide, providing florists with a brand under which flowers can be purchased and delivered to 140 countries, most with their own partnership, or unit.- History :...
online in 2010.
The John Lewis
John Lewis (department store)
-Recent developments:In June 2004, John Lewis announced plans to open its first store in Northern Ireland at the Sprucefield Park development, the province's largest out of town shopping centre, located outside Lisburn and from Belfast. The application was approved in June 2005 and the opening of...
shopping chain beat M&S to the title of the UK's best high-street website by late 2010.
Old labels
The 'St Margaret', 'St Michael' and 'Homecare' brands were the time-honoured brand labels that fell out of use in the company-wide re-branding campaign of the early 2000s. The stylish 1996–1997 'Orient Express Tagged' brand was the first of numerous new brands, most of which were in feminine and children's clothes. The 'Orient Express Tagged' brand was part of the inspiration behind the 'Portfolio' brand. The men's Autograph brand was then launched in 2000 and continues to this day.Sir Stuart Rose axed the ailing casual menswear
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
brand SP Clothing, the View From sportswear
Sportswear
Sportswear or activewear is clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons....
range, the David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...
children's range, DB07 clothes, the teenage range Per Una Due and several food lines in 2004, because he thought the business’ stock inventory management had become 'too complicated',.
The retailer had launched several brands, sub-brands and lines of women's wear and children's wear in recent years such as Indigo Collection Junior, Indigo Collection and Portfolio. Indigo Collection aimed at women over 30s, while Portfolio 45s. Overall, M &S has 10 women's wear sub-brands and sub-sub-brands, such as Per Una and Autograph, but only six menswear brands, such as Blue Harbour, North Coast and Collezione by 2010.
The 2008-9 restructuring plan
As part of the 2008-9 restructuring plan, 9 sub-brands that were deemed to be unprofitable, unnecessary or superfluous were either discontinued, merged or relaunched in 2008, with further activity, including some store closures, occurred in both 2009 and 2010.| Line, sub-brand or brand involved. | Date of action. | Fate of line, sub-brand or brand involved. | Source(s). |
|---|---|---|---|
| Floor 1 discount brands—women's discount fashion clothes | Early 2008/the festive season of 2008–2009 | Replaced by the 'Designer discount' line in early 2008. It was relaunched in the festive season 2008–2009 as- By me now or lose me for ever- limited editions. | |
| Romper-suit republic—baby clothes (was only available online) | 2008 | Discontinued | . |
| The Shirt-sleeve empire—boys' shirts (was only available online) | 2008 | Discontinued | . |
| Essential—up market skirts and t-shirts | 2009 | Merged in to Portfolio, along with Perfect. 'Essential' now also continues as a seasonal line of the 'Autograph' brand. | . |
| Perfect—upmarket trousers, skirts and blouses | 2009 | Merged in to Portfolio, along with Essential. Perfect still operates in men's rain coats and cookware. 'Perfect' was relaunched in January 2010 as a seasonal sub-brand of 'Portfolio'. | |
| Plus range maternity (large stores only). | 2008 | Merged with Limited Collection Maternity as 'M&S Maternity'. | . |
| Limited Collection Maternity | 2008 | Merged with Plus Range Maternity as 'M&S Maternity' to simplify administration. | ,,. |
| The Zandra Rhodes Zandra Rhodes Zandra Rhodes, CBE, RDI, is an English fashion designer.Zandra Rhodes was introduced to the world of fashion by her mother, who was a fitter in a Paris fashion house and a teacher at Medway College of Art, now the University for the Creative Arts. Rhodes studied first at Medway and then at the... collection was a upmarket woollen clothes and t-shirt T-shirt A T-shirt is a style of shirt. A T-shirt is buttonless and collarless, with short sleeves and frequently a round neck line.... s modelled and made by the British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes Zandra Rhodes Zandra Rhodes, CBE, RDI, is an English fashion designer.Zandra Rhodes was introduced to the world of fashion by her mother, who was a fitter in a Paris fashion house and a teacher at Medway College of Art, now the University for the Creative Arts. Rhodes studied first at Medway and then at the... , CBE Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions... /RDI Royal Designers for Industry Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustained excellence in aesthetic and efficient design for... |
February 2010 | It was launched in April 2009, but was let gradually run down in the festive season during December 2009 and January 2010. It was finally discontinued due to poor sales performance in February 2010. | ,. |
| 'Party, Party, Party!' was a line of seasonal party clothes | July/October 2010. | Discontinued in July 2010, but then relaunched as 'Partyware' October 2010. | |
| 'Katy Livingston' was an up market sports clothes and merchandise relating to the British athlete Katy Livingston Katy Livingston Katy Livingston is a British modern pentathlete who has competed at the Olympic Games.-Early life:... . |
Mid 2010 | It was launched in early 2009 and developed in to the 'Performance' brand. 'Performance' was the resulting line of serious sportswear for dedicated female athletes that would merge with the feminine 'Sportswere' line in mid 2010 due to the need for administrative simplification. | |
| 'Frenchay' (was only available online)- French made, utilitarian/good value plastic home ware, clothes pegs, clothes hangers, etc. | The Festive season of 2008–2009. | It was merged in to the other 'Kitchens' brands. | |
| 'Fashion line'- babies' fashion clothes | Early 2010 | It merged with Babyware and Petite Babe. | . |
| 'Ready to play' playwear Romper suit A romper suit is a one-piece garment worn by children and sometimes women. Somewhat similar to a coverall, it is loose fitting and usually has shorter legs that may be gathered at the end. Puffed pants are particularly associated with rompers... |
Early 2010 | Discontinued, but some designs continued under the 'Casual line' | . |
| 'Themed collection'- Cartoon and story book character merchandised clothing | late 2008 | Merged with Character shop | . |
| 'Nightware'- Teen's night clothes | Early 2010 | Merged with the 'Sleepware' line | . |
| B.C.A.M. Breakthrough Breast Cancer Breakthrough Breast Cancer is a United Kingdom charity committed to fighting breast cancer through research, campaigning and education. Its vision is "to work for a future free from the fear of breast cancer".-History:... - charitable merchandise aimed at raising awareness of breast cancer. |
The Festive season of 2009–2010. | Merged with B.C.A.UK as 'Love Pink'. | . |
| B.C.A.UK- on line charitable T-shirts for the under 40s. | The Festive season of 2009–2010. | Merged with B.C.A.M. as 'Love Pink'. | . |
| 'Food to go' line | The Festive season of 2010–2011. | It was merged in to ’Lunchtogo’ during the festive season of 2010–2011 | . |
- 'Conde Nast' (the M&S clothes, not Condé Nast PublicationsCondé Nast PublicationsCondé Nast, a division of Advance Publications, is a magazine publisher. In the U.S., it produces 18 consumer magazines, including Architectural Digest, Bon Appétit, GQ, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Vogue, as well as four business-to-business publications, 27 websites, and more than 50 apps...
) -designer clothes were a planned sub-brand that was not launched in over the festive season of 2009–2010 because of the credit crunchCredit crunchA credit crunch is a reduction in the general availability of loans or a sudden tightening of the conditions required to obtain a loan from the banks. A credit crunch generally involves a reduction in the availability of credit independent of a rise in official interest rates...
and became part of the 'Indigo Collection' and 'Portfolio' lines.
- All the Kid’s furniture (the 'Kid's bedroom' line), bedding and electronic toys (part of the 'Toy shop' brand) were re-grouped and expanded as the 'Kids at home' brand in January 2010, but the merger had been repealed and broke back up by July 2010.
- Perfection (Autograph's & Per Una's perfumaries merged into one in early 2009)
- The company also began to sell branded goods like Kellogg's Corn Flakes in November 2008. It may discontinue branded goods in 2011 following a review by the new Chief Executive Marc Bolland.
The 2010 product audit
Another review and rebranding exercise was planned for late 2010 and 2011 after several years of declining sales in the womenswear department as born out by an audit conducted by the firm the Retail Knowledge Bank in August 2010.'PU Active' was a brief foray by Per Una in to the casual sportswear lines in September 2010, but it was scrapped during its infancy by October due to poor sales figures.
The '2011 brand cull'
Marc Bolland
Marc Bolland
Marc Bolland is a Dutch businessman, who is the current CEO of Marks and Spencer Group plc. and has been noted to be one of the most influential people in business for 2010-Biography:...
had considered axing several brands in early 2011 after an audit by the Retail Knowledge Bank in the August 2010, revealed that sales of M&S women’s’ ware were at a 10 year low. The audit covered both the Limited Collection, Autograph, Autograph Weekend, Classic Collection, Per Una, Portfolio and Indigo.
In mid-2010, Draper magazine claimed that Per Una was the only clothing brand that was not at risk of being axed in Mr Bolland's shake-up of the plethora of clothing brands sold at M&S. Per Una was planned to stay due to its successful and distinctive flair, but Portfolio and Indigo were planned go due to poor sales. Both the Limited Collection, Autograph, Autograph Weekend, Classic Collection brands were being considered for the cull during mid-2010, but were later given a reprieve.
It was revealed in November 2010, that there would be a major 3 year UK store revamp, which would cost between £850,000,000 and £900,000,000 and a cull of what Bolland called ""the often confusing" store layouts and "indistinguishable brands".
M&S also announced it was planning to take Twiggy international some time during 2010–2011.
Store and depot locations
Planned 2010 store closuresTwenty-two unprofitable and minor food stores, such as the ones at Ripon
Ripon
Ripon is a cathedral city, market town and successor parish in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England, located at the confluence of two streams of the River Ure in the form of the Laver and Skell. The city is noted for its main feature the Ripon Cathedral which is architecturally...
and Balham
Balham
Balham is a district of London, EnglandBalham can also refer to:*Balham, Ardennes, a commune in France*Balham station, railway and tube station in Balham, London*Balaam, a Biblical figure...
, were closed in early 2009 as part of a cost cutting measure.
In August 2010, it was confirmed that the Grantham
Grantham
Grantham is a market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It bestrides the East Coast Main Line railway , the historic A1 main north-south road, and the River Witham. Grantham is located approximately south of the city of Lincoln, and approximately east of Nottingham...
branch of M&S would close, along with two other Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
branches in Skegness
Skegness
Skegness is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. Located on the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, east of the city of Lincoln it has a total resident population of 18,910....
and Scunthorpe
Scunthorpe
Scunthorpe is a town within North Lincolnshire, England. It is the administrative centre of the North Lincolnshire unitary authority, and had an estimated total resident population of 72,514 in 2010. A predominantly industrial town, Scunthorpe, the United Kingdom's largest steel processing centre,...
, due to low sales in these older format stores. The closures were met with protests from the local communities and petitions were signed in support of retaining the stores. Despite these protests, the store closures will go ahead.
New Stores opening
It was revealed in November 2010, that new stores would be opening in China and India. One of the planned stores is scheduled to open in the Shanghai region in 2011.
The 2010 Plan
On 9 November 2010, chief executive Marc Bolland revealed plans to strengthen the company’s overall brand image and targeting sales of between £800m and £1bn for which company will increase capital expenditure to £850m to £900m over the next three years to fund the plans. As per the 2010 Plan company will stop its 'Portfolio' fashion brand, sales of electrical products and revamp its website. The company also announced a new marketing strapline – 'Only at M&S'.The May-August 2011 Corporate revamp.
Fashion guru Sara Bradley was reported in March as planning to a 'senior role' within M&S's clothing business by mid 2011.By 25 May 2011, Marc Bolland, had ordered a new store design that the company would spend a capital expenditure of about £600m between 2011 and 2014 on its UK stores.
The scheme will involve M&S will launch a range of different store formats based on the age, affluence and demographics of people in the various areas from October, in what will be termed the "cluster" model internally. A new in-store "navigation scheme" will be launched after research showed that shoppers found M&S store layouts confusing and "difficult to shop [in]".
The chain was also forced to increase the amount of money-off promotions and deals that it offered due to the declining economic climate in the UK.
The firm's packaging, clothing brands and labels will change. The retailer has announced plans to abandon the "Marks & Spencer" label from its clothes, replacing it with "M&S Woman" and "M&S Man". It will also re-launch its Per Una and North Coast
North Coast
North Coast or Northcoast may refer to :Australia* North Coast , a regionCanada* "North Coast" in British Columbia means the northernmost region of the British Columbia Coast, primarily the communities of Prince Rupert, Terrace and Kitimat and surrounding areas** North Coast , an electoral district...
clothing sub-brands.
The official goal is to be better at food than supermarkets and better at clothes and general merchandise than department stores.
Marks & Spencer dropped a series of planned television adverts in the July 2011, featuring Twiggy
Twiggy
Lesley Lawson née Hornby known as Twiggy is an English model, actress, and singer. In the early-1960s she became a prominent British teenage model of swinging sixties London with others such as Penelope Tree....
, Dannii Minogue and VV Brown
VV Brown
Vanessa Brown , also known as VV Brown, is an English singer, songwriter, model, and producer signed to Island Records in the United Kingdom and to Universal Republic Records and Capitol Records in the United States...
as it started its corporate image revamp.
Twiggy was expected to be appearing on billboards and in-store promotions for a while longer with the retailer.
Both Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon is an English fashion model, television personality and presenter. She was the host of the reality television show Britain's Next Top Model from 2006 until 2009...
and Jamie Redknapp
Jamie Redknapp
Jamie Frank Redknapp is a retired English footballer who was active from 1989 until 2005. He is now a football pundit with Sky Sports, and an editorial columnist with the Daily Mail....
were still continuing to promote the Marks & Spencer brand in future.
Jerry Hall
Jerry Hall
Jerry Faye Hall is an American model and actress, also known for her long-term relationship with Mick Jagger, with whom she had four children.-Early life:...
and Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
's daughter Lizzy
Elizabeth Jagger
Elizabeth "Lizzy" Scarlett Jagger is an English-American model and actress. She is the oldest daughter of Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall, and the paternal half-sister to Jade Jagger.-Early life and career:...
, were reportedly removed from the corporate commercial series listings earlier that year.
Alison Jones, who is the daughter of Sir David Jones, joined M&S on June 2nd, as the new brand director for general merchandise, under the leadership of marketing director, Steve Sharp
Steve Sharp
Steve Sharp is a former U.S. soccer forward who played in the Major Indoor Soccer League, Western Soccer Alliance and American Professional Soccer League. He also earned eight caps, scoring one goal, with the U.S. national team in 1984 and 1985....
. She had gained previous experience at Topshop
Topshop
Topshop is a British clothes retailer with shops in over 20 countries and online operations in a number of its markets. Its sales come primarily from women's clothing and fashion accessories...
and Debenhams
Debenhams
Debenhams plc is a British retailer operating under a department store format in the UK, Ireland and Denmark, and franchise stores in other countries. The Company was founded in the eighteenth century as a single store in London and has now grown to around 160 shops...
. The role has been created to give a more cohesive approach to M&S's branding and help develop and co-ordinate the brand and strategy for M&S's clothing division.
London
The headquarters of M&S was for a hundred years at Michael House, 55 Baker Street, London; during World War II these offices were used by the Special Operations ExecutiveSpecial Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
for secret missions in Occupied Europe. In 2004 the company moved to a new headquarters designed by mossessian & partners
Michel Mossessian
Michel Mossessian is a French architect based in London, UK. Michel gained his diploma in architecture at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts UP N°8 in Paris, where he also engaged in philosophy under Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault...
at Waterside House in the new Paddington Basin
Paddington Basin
Paddington Basin is an area of Paddington, London named after the nearby canal basin.The junction of the Regent's Canal and the Grand Junction Canal is close to this point but the basin itself is the terminus of the Paddington Arm of the Grand Junction Canal. It was opened in 1801...
, London.
Across the UK
As well as the main offices in London, there are a number of other head office sites across the UK; Stockley Park (IT Services), Salford QuaysSalford Quays
Salford Quays is an area of Salford in Greater Manchester, England, near the end of the Manchester Ship Canal. Previously the site of Manchester Docks, it became one of the first and largest urban regeneration projects in the United Kingdom following the closure of the dockyards in...
and Spinningfields
Spinningfields
Spinningfields is a large business, retail and residential development in Manchester, England that lies in the western portion of the City Centre, between south Deansgate and the River Irwell. The Spinningfields complex is the masterplan of Allied London Properties, a London-based property...
, Greater Manchester (Marks & Spencer Shared Services Ltd. which provides human resources, and finance administration), Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
(HSBC's M&S Money and Retail Customer Services), and Draycott
Draycott
Draycott may refer to:* Draycott, Derbyshire** Draycott and Breaston railway station * Draycott, Gloucestershire* Draycot, Oxfordshire* Draycott, in Rodney Stoke parish, Somerset** Draycott Sleights, a nearby SSSI...
(per una).
Overseas
The company has overseas sourcing offices in Hong Kong, Thailand, India, Bangladesh, Turkey, Shanghai, Italy, Indonesia and Sri Lanka.UK and Ireland shops
M&S have over 600 shops throughout the United Kingdom, with nearly 1.2 million square metres (12.5 million square feet) of selling space. This includes the flagship, and largest, shop, Marble ArchMarble Arch
Marble Arch is a white Carrara marble monument that now stands on a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane, and Edgware Road, almost directly opposite Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England...
, London, on Oxford Street
Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, United Kingdom. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as its most dense, and currently has approximately 300 shops. The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate,...
, which has around 16000 square metres (19,135.8 sq yd) of shop floor
Shop floor
--The Shop floor literally is the floor of a factory where people work on machines, or the space in a retail establishment where goods are sold to customers...
.
The second largest is in Warrington
Warrington
Warrington is a town, borough and unitary authority area of Cheshire, England. It stands on the banks of the River Mersey, which is tidal to the west of the weir at Howley. It lies 16 miles east of Liverpool, 19 miles west of Manchester and 8 miles south of St Helens...
(Gemini), although the forthcoming M&S Megastore in Leeds will take over as the largest outside London. The third largest shop is at the Sprucefield Centre
Sprucefield
Sprucefield is a major out-of-town retail park in the townland of Magherageery, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the southern edge of Lisburn; about one mile from the middle of Lisburn and ten miles from the middle of Belfast. Sprucefield is located beside the M1 motorway and the A1 road...
in Lisburn
Lisburn
DemographicsLisburn Urban Area is within Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area and is classified as a Large Town by the . On census day there were 71,465 people living in Lisburn...
, Northern Ireland. In 1999 M&S opened its shop in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
's Exchange Square
Exchange Square (Manchester)
Exchange Square is located in the English city of Manchester. The square was heavily redeveloped after the IRA 1996 Manchester bombing. This reconstruction included the moving of two pubs to make room for the new Marks & Spencer store....
, which was destroyed in the 1996 Manchester bombing
1996 Manchester bombing
The 1996 Manchester bombing was an attack carried out by the Provisional Irish Republican Army on 15 June 1996 in Manchester, England. The bomb, placed in a van on Corporation Street in city centre, targeted the city's infrastructure and economy and caused widespread damage, estimated by...
and rebuilt. At re-opening, it was the largest M&S shop with 250000 sq ft (23,225.8 m²) of retail space, but half was subsequently sold to Selfridges
Selfridges
Selfridges, AKA Selfridges & Co, is a chain of high end department stores in the United Kingdom. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge. The flagship store in London's Oxford Street is the second largest shop in the UK and was opened on 15 March 1909.More recently, three other stores have been...
, the company's second site in Manchester.
M&S has opened a number of stores at out of town locations since the trend to build shopping centres away from town centres became popular in the 1980s. A notable example is the store at the Merry Hill Shopping Centre
Merry Hill Shopping Centre
Westfield Merry Hill is a shopping centre in Brierley Hill near Dudley, West Midlands, England. It was developed between 1985 and 1990, with several expansion and renovation projects taking place since. The original developers and owners were Richardson Developments but the Centre has had a number...
at Brierley Hill
Brierley Hill
Brierley Hill is a town and electoral ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, West Midlands, England. It is one of the larger Black Country towns with a population of 9,631 and is heavily industrialised, best known for glass and steel manufacturing, although the industry has declined...
, West Midlands. This store opened on 23 October 1990 shortly after the closure of stores in the nearby town centres of Dudley
Dudley
Dudley is a large town in the West Midlands county of England. At the 2001 census , the Dudley Urban Sub Area had a population of 194,919, making it the 26th largest settlement in England, the second largest town in the United Kingdom behind Reading, and the largest settlement in the UK without...
and West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...
; the Merry Hill store was not originally intended to be replace these two town centres store, but both the Dudley and West Bromwich stores had experienced a downturn in trade as the opening of the Merry Hill store loomed, and both stores were closed on 25 August 1990.
At the beginning of 2011, M&S closed three shops in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. Despite much protesting and local media coverage the three stores in Grantham
Grantham
Grantham is a market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It bestrides the East Coast Main Line railway , the historic A1 main north-south road, and the River Witham. Grantham is located approximately south of the city of Lincoln, and approximately east of Nottingham...
, Skegness
Skegness
Skegness is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. Located on the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, east of the city of Lincoln it has a total resident population of 18,910....
and Scunthorpe
Scunthorpe
Scunthorpe is a town within North Lincolnshire, England. It is the administrative centre of the North Lincolnshire unitary authority, and had an estimated total resident population of 72,514 in 2010. A predominantly industrial town, Scunthorpe, the United Kingdom's largest steel processing centre,...
were all closed, Marks & Spencer citing poor sales. All three towns have now lost their main high-street retailer and concerns have been raised about the viability of the shopping centres now that M&S have deserted them.
Before Christmas 2006, twenty-two M&S shops were open for 24-hour trading including the recently-opened new retail park stores at Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
Middlebrook and at the Abbey Centre, Newtownabbey
Newtownabbey
Newtownabbey is a large town north of Belfast in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Sometimes considered to be a suburb of Belfast, it is separated from the rest of the city by Cavehill and Fortwilliam golf course...
, Northern Ireland.
M&S have over 20 shops including three Simply Food outlets throughout Ireland. M&S opened its first shop in the Republic on Mary Street, Dublin in 1979 (now part of the Jervis Shopping Centre
Jervis Shopping Centre
The Jervis Shopping Centre is a major shopping centre in Dublin, Ireland. Opened in 1996, the centre is located in the area bordered by Jervis Street, Upper Abbey Street, Mary Street, and Liffey Street. -History:...
). A shop in Grafton Street, followed in 1988, Cork in 1989, then in 1996 the Grafton Street location to its present location in the former Brown Thomas
Brown Thomas
Brown Thomas & Company Limited is a chain of four Irish department stores, located in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick. Owned by Wittington Investments, Brown Thomas is an upmarket chain, akin to Canada's Holt Renfrew chain and Britain's Selfridges stores, which are also controlled by the Weston...
store and finally the first out-of-town shop in Liffey Valley
Liffey Valley Shopping Centre
Liffey Valley Shopping Centre is a shopping centre, that is located in Clondalkin in Dublin 22. The centre opened in 1998 and is located at the junction of the M50 motorway and N4 road...
in October 1998. The new Grafton Street shop now boasts M&S's only 'The Restaurant' offering outside of the UK.
The newest Irish outlet in Douglas opened on 25 November 2010 at Douglas Village Shopping centre, Cork City. The Douglas shop contains a vast amount of floor space for the M&S clothing range, a large M&S Café and a food hall with all the current decor and fittings throughout the store. The Irish stores use a similar format and product line to the UK stores, including use of the M&S logo (which at Liffey Valley is the only logo used on exterior signs since a June 2007 refit and since opening in Killarney
Killarney
Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein/Leane which are part of Killarney National Park. The town and its surrounding region are home to St...
).
The company is committed to the expansion of its Irish operations with a number of new shops opened in 2009 including Sligo
Sligo
Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...
, Clonmel
Clonmel
Clonmel is the county town of South Tipperary in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county. While the borough had a population of 15,482 in 2006, another 17,008 people were in the rural hinterland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian army which sacked both...
(opened 25 June 2009), Navan
Navan
-People:Navan was the childhood home of Pierce Brosnan, who appeared in the television series Remington Steele and was the fifth film actor to play James Bond. TV personality Hector Ó hEochagáin, and comedians Dylan Moran and Tommy Tiernan also hail from Navan....
, and Limerick
Limerick
Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
which is one of the largest in Ireland at 110000 square feet (10,219.3 m²) but will be overtaken shortly after by a new store in Swords, County Dublin at 130000 square feet (12,077.4 m²). The largest M&S stores in Ireland are at the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre
Liffey Valley Shopping Centre
Liffey Valley Shopping Centre is a shopping centre, that is located in Clondalkin in Dublin 22. The centre opened in 1998 and is located at the junction of the M50 motorway and N4 road...
located in Lucan, County Dublin/Clondalkin
Clondalkin
-Today:Modern Clondalkin is a busy satellite town of Dublin, with a population of 43,929 in 2006. Retail facilities include Tesco Ireland- and Dunnes Stores-led shopping centres, and Aldi and Lidl stores on the Fonthill Road and New Nangor Road respectively, and the village centre is a base for...
in South Dublin
South Dublin
South Dublin is a county in Ireland. It is one of three smaller counties into which County Dublin was divided in 1994. The county seat is Tallaght, the largest suburb of Dublin and the biggest urban centre in the county. Other important centres of population are Lucan and Clondalkin...
, at Mary Street in Dublin City Centre and at Dundrum Town Centre
Dundrum Town Centre
"Dundrum Town Centre" is the name of a shopping centre located in Dundrum, in Dublin, in Ireland. It is Ireland's largest shopping centre with over 160 tenants, more than 80,000 square metres of floor space and over 3,400 car parking spaces...
in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown is a county in Ireland. It is one of three smaller counties into which County Dublin was divided in 1994. Located to the south-east of Dublin city, its county seat is the town of Dún Laoghaire. It is one of the four constituent parts of the Dublin Region...
.
The company's website has received criticism for having its prices in Pound sterling
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
and not in euro, and for providing a search for its Irish stores through a "UK Store Finder". The Irish Times
The Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
pointed out that M&S failed to explain why the company is in a position to deliver goods ordered from its website to Brazil, Argentina, Iraq and Afghanistan but not to Ireland. M&S did not comment.
Shops outside the UK and Ireland
There are currently shops located in 41 countries including the following: .. Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bermuda, Bulgaria, People's Republic of China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, France, Greece, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Jersey, Kuwait, Latvia, Libya, Lithuania, Malaysia, Malta, Montenegro, Oman, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United Arab Emirates.
Core shops
M&S core shops typically feature a selection of the company's clothing ranges and a M&S Food hall. The range of clothing sold and the space given to it depends on the location and customer demographic (an example would be that some London shops do not stock the Classic Collection, but stock Limited Collection and a full Autograph range).Most core shop feature a Food hall. All the St Michael Food hall supermarkets were renamed M&S Food hall when Marks & Spencer dropped the St Michael brand in 2000. Each M&S Food hall sells groceries, which are all under the Marks & Spencer brand. However, in 2009 the company began selling a limited range of other brands, such as Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
and Stella Artois
Stella Artois
Stella Artois is a 5% ABV lager brewed in Leuven, Belgium since 1926. In the UK, Canada and New Zealand a 4% ABV version is also available.-Production:...
, without reducing the number of M&S goods they sold. This returns to the previous Marks & Spencer practice of selling branded food, before the company become solely-own-brand.
Hospitality
Most M&S shops feature some sort of hospitality offering, usually in the form of an M&S Café. These cafés were formerly known as Café Revive and many old format stores still brand them as such. The café offering typically includes coffees and teas (all fairtrade), pastries, toasted sandwiches, soups and cakes. The company also trialled the opening of an Espresso Bar in some outlets, which specialised in drinks only, however these have subsequently been rebranded as M&S Cafés.Many large shops, such as Westfield, White City
Westfield London
Westfield London is a shopping centre in White City in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The centre was developed by the Westfield Group at a cost of £1.6bn,...
, Cribbs Causeway and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, also offer other hospitality outlets, such as a modern Deli Bar (champagne, canapés, seafood), Restaurant (table service—the first of which was opened in Newcastle) M&S Kitchen (traditional home cooking & lunches) or Hot Food To Go (burgers, chips, soups). Many of these outlets are run in conjunction with Compass Group
Compass Group
Compass Group plc is a global contract foodservice and support services company headquartered near London, United Kingdom. It is the largest contract foodservice company in the world and has operations in over 50 countries...
and even in smaller outlets they also partner up to offer ready made baguettes as part of the standard Food To Go offering.
Home Stores
In 2007, M&S announced that new, dedicated shops for home furnishings were to be launched. Shops have now been opened in CheltenhamCheltenham
Cheltenham , also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a large spa town and borough in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds in the South-West region of England. It is the home of the flagship race of British steeplechase horse racing, the Gold Cup, the main event of the Cheltenham Festival held...
in Gloucestershire, Lisburn
Lisburn
DemographicsLisburn Urban Area is within Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area and is classified as a Large Town by the . On census day there were 71,465 people living in Lisburn...
in Northern Ireland and in the Barton Square section of The Trafford Centre
Trafford Centre
The Trafford Centre is a large indoor shopping centre and leisure complex situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, close to the Trafford Park industrial estate and approximately 5 miles from Manchester city centre. It is the highest valued shopping centre in the...
, Manchester. On 19 November 2009 Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
became the first dedicated homeware outlet in Scotland and the biggest of all the M&S homestores in the UK.
Petrol Stations
As off the 10th of November 2011 Marks and Spencers opened their own petrol stations.
Outlet Shops
As of 2010, M&S have 50 outlet stores and growth expansion plans for future. The Outlet division offers M&S products with the majority of them discounting at least 30% from the original selling price. The first of these stores opened at AshfordAshford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
in Kent in 2000. Many of the Outlet shops are in locations such as retail parks and outlet centres, though some, including the shop in Woolwich
Woolwich
Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...
, South London and Newton Abbot
Newton Abbot
Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England on the River Teign, with a population of 23,580....
, Devon were previously main M&S shops which converted to the Outlet format. Meadow Bank Outlet Store in Edinburgh became the model for all the Marks and Spencer Outlet shop in the early months of 2010.
There are now also stores which combine a mainline M&S store and an Outlet store to create a store which offers both the main current full-price M&S ranges and the discounted Outlet ranges: one such store is at the Lewisham Shopping Centre
Lewisham Shopping Centre
Lewisham Shopping Centre, formerly Riverdale Centre, is a shopping mall located in Lewisham, London, England. The mall has seen a 7% rise in footfall since the Docklands Light Railway extension came to Lewisham. The centre is the only one inside the borough of Lewisham , and also the nearby...
, where the previously-closed upper level of the M&S store was reopened in January 2009 as an Outlet format sub-store;
M&S Simply Food
Twickenham
Twickenham is a large suburban town southwest of central London. It is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan...
and Surbiton
Surbiton
Surbiton, a suburban area of London in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, is situated next to the River Thames, with a mixture of Art-Deco courts, more recent residential blocks and grand, spacious 19th century townhouses blending into a sea of semi-detached 20th century housing estates...
.
A number of these are run under franchise
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
agreements:
- Select Service Partner (SSP) runs the stores at mainline railway stations and airports
- MotoMoto HospitalityMoto Hospitality is a company which operates 58 motorway service stations across the UK.Moto is owned by a consortium of shareholders including Australian Pension Funds and European and New Zealand Infrastructure Funds and is asset managed by Macquarie Investment Bank...
has stores at several of its motorway service stations - BPBPBP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
has over 120 forecourts with a Simply Food offering
Orders from M & S account for more than half of Uniq's food product supplies to UK retailers in 2010 after several years service as a major M & S food product supplier.
Senior management
The following have served as the Chairman of the company since it was founded:- 1884–1907: Michael MarksMichael MarksMichael Marks, , was one of the two co-founders of the retail chain Marks & Spencer.-Biography:...
(set up first stall in Leeds in 1884) - 1907–1916: William Chapman.
- 1916–1964: Simon MarksSimon MarksSimon Marks, 1st Baron Marks of Broughton , was a British Jewish businessman.Marks was born in Leeds and educated at The Manchester Grammar School. In 1907 he inherited a number of "penny bazaars" from his father, Michael Marks, which had been established with Thomas Spencer...
(Lord Marks) - 1964–1967: Israel SieffIsrael SieffIsrael Moses Sieff, Baron Sieff was a British businessman.He was educated at Manchester Grammar School and Manchester University. One of the theatres at the Manchester Grammar School is named in his honour....
(Lord Sieff) - 1967–1972: Edward Sieff
- 1972–1984: Marcus Sieff (Lord Sieff)
- 1984–1991: Derek Rayner (Lord Rayner)
- 1991–1999: Sir Richard Greenbury
- 2000–2004: Luc Vandevelde
- 2004–2006: Paul MynersPaul MynersPaul Myners, Baron Myners, CBE was the Financial Services Secretary in HM Treasury, the UK's finance ministry, during the Labour Government of Gordon Brown. He held the position from October 2008 until May 2010, and was made a life peer in consequence of his appointment, as he was not an elected...
- 2006–2009: Lord Burns
- 2009–2010: Sir Stuart Rose
- 2010 – present: Robert Swannell
The former WH Smiths Chief Financier, Alan Stewart became the Financial Director of M & S just after Marc Bolland arrived.
See also
- List of Marks & Spencer brands
- Supermarket