Marks and Spencer to close 67 stores in major shake-up of branches over next five years
MARKS and Spencer is planning to close 67 stores over the next five years as part of a major shake-up.
The high street retailer says it is closing some of its "lower productivity, full line stores".
But M&S also announced that it will be opening 104 new "bigger and fresher" food stores.
The closures are part of 110 that had previously been announced, but the 67 confirmed today shows plans have been accelerated.
It comes after more than 30 stores closed during the pandemic as clothing and homeware sales were hit.
The shake-up will take place over the next five years, but bosses say they are aiming for it to be completed in three.
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The need for speed comes as it faces a tough consumer backdrop, rising inflation and a £100 million hit from soaring energy costs.
The retailer has said that it is accelerating up its store overhaul to save around £309 million in rent costs.
Last year the business said that it wanted to reduce its number of clothing and home shops down to 180 from 247 shops.
This is around one in four stores.
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But M&S says it plans to expand its Simply Food shops from 316 to 420.
Many are expected to reopen in the same area or location as sites earmarked for closure.
Marks & Spencer has already closed 68 stores in recent years, but its efforts to cut its rent bill were disrupted by the pandemic.
The retailer has previously said that it was focused on moving out of tired stores on high streets with low footfall in favour of relocating to retail parks, which continue to prove popular with shoppers.
Marks and Spencer is yet to confirm which stores will be closing, but we will update as soon as we know.
The retailer is now focusing on growing its food business, which continues to be stronger than its clothing arm which has for years struggled to grow sales.
M&S has been attracting more family shoppers by widening its food ranges from sandwiches and ready meals to more ingredients for cooking from scratch and lowering prices.
The retailer also said that it would be investing £200 million in lowering prices of its food and fashion ranges to remain competitive.
It said that its new Good Move athleisure range, which sells leggings for £27.50, was still growing and it wanted to bring more sports brands into its stable of 50 third-party brands.
M&S now sells Mamas & Papas, Joules, Clarks and Seasalt fashion ranges online.
The business said that it wanted to grow the number of customers who buy through its app from 3.9 million to 10 million as it sees online shopping as a major growth opportunity.
M&S said it would consider buying more fashion brands that would be “sensible bolt-on “ deals.
It recently bought a majority stake in Nobody’s Child, which has brought new, younger shoppers to Marks & Spencer.
In September, M&S announced it was to give thousands of workers their second pay rise this year.
It means a full-time customer assistants at M&S now earn over £100 more each month compared to October 2021.
The retailer also announced that customers using the Marks and Spencer Sparks loyalty scheme will be able to apply for a new digital credit account.
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Marks and Spencer has also revealed its menu line up for Christmas - and you can start ordering food now.
Meanwhile, we reveal five ways to bag a bargain at M&S.