M&S to close SIXTY stores across UK after 88% drop in profits as iconic store switches focus from clothes to food
More than 2,000 jobs could be affected globally but the store is planning to open 200 more Simply Food shops across the UK
MARKS & SPENCER is to close around 60 clothing and home stores - possibly affecting more than 2,000 jobs.
The store announced this morning that it was going to focus on its more successful Simply Food stores as it posted an 80 per cent drop in half-year profits to £25.1 million.
CEO Steve Rowe, who took over in April, is planning to close the stores over the next five years, but will open 200 more Simply Food shops across the UK by 2019 in the biggest shake up for years.
The chain also said it would refocus on international business to tackle losses of £45 million - and will be closing 53 stores globally including in France and China.
Rowe said the aim is to “build a sustainable business which will delight our customers, provide a robust foundation for future growth and deliver value for our shareholders in the long term."
He added: “These are tough decisions, but vital to building a future M&S that is simpler, more relevant, multi-channel and focused on delivering sustainable returns.”
Speaking about the closures on Good Morning Britain, Rowe said: "This is not the beginning of the end, it's the beginning of the beginning.
"What we're doing is reshaping our estate now to make it more relevant, more modern and more appropriate to how customers are shopping."
He added: "This program will create more jobs, it is not about job cuts."
It comes after M&S revealed more sales falls in its clothing division, with like-for-like sales down by 5.9 per cent in the first half.
The retailer has over 300 full-range sites and nearly 600 Simply Food shops in the UK.
It comes days after The Sun Online reported that dozens of stores around the UK could close as part of a massive cost-cutting drive.
It is thought that a number of stores could be relocated, while existing shops will see layouts changed to prioritise more profitable parts of the business.
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Rowe is under pressure to turn M&S around after it has struggled to shift women's fashion.
Since taking over from the previous boss, Marc Bolland, in April, Rowe has axed more than 500 head office jobs in an attempt to cut down costs.
There are no clues as to whether the store will expand its current online shop or what clothing lines - if any - will be dropped.
It comes just three months after another high street household name, BHS, shut the door on over 200 branches around the UK.
British Home Stores, a name that was a fixture on most high streets in the UK, disappeared after nearly a century after first opening in Brixton, London.
It called in administrators in June, with 11,000 workers losing their jobs.
Previous bosses Sir Philip Green and Dominic Chappell, have both come under scrutiny for the collapse and a £571million pension black hole.
The plans to drop clothing ranges from some M&S stores comes just days after it launched its latest range of clothing in collaboration with Alexa Chung.
The IT girl, model and author was recruited by the retailer in an attempt to revive dwindling sales.
The new Archive by Alexa collection went on sale last Tuesday and includes a range of trendy trench coats, dresses, shirts and shoes.
Alexa celebrated the launch two weeks ago with a star-studded party, where she wore on of the dresses from her collection.
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