M&S will be opening 20 new stores and 12 new food halls across the UK as part of a £480m investment in its bricks and mortar store estate, creating over 3,400 new jobs across the country.
The new “bigger, better” stores will be opening over the next financial year as the high street giant looks to create a “seamless experience” for its customers.
Alongside these full line sites, M&S has planned significant investment in 12 new food halls, which will be based in community locations across the UK.
M&S made the announcement at its recent investor day, outlining its ambition to fast-track a five year store rotation programme and deliver a new store portfolio of 180 full fine stores and 420 owned food stores by FY25/26.
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New stores opening over the coming year include eight full-line destination stores in key city centre locations, with five of those being relocated to former Debenhams sites – part of the retailer’s investment to regenerate vacant stores.
Each is being designed with local families and the shopping experience in mind, with wider aisles and a clear line of sight for shoppers. Fresh market-style food halls will stock the full M&S Food range, complete with sustainable innovations such as Fill Your Own, as well as brand-new M&S cafes.
Free car parking will also make shopping more convenient for customers.
In addition to its owned store investment, M&S will be extending its successful franchise model with BP, Moto, SSP and Costa and expanding its convenience offer to allow more customers can enjoy the M&S Food range.
Announcing the plans, CEO Stuart Machin said the new stores will be a “core part” of M&S’s omnichannel future, offering a “competitive advantage” for how customers want to shop today.
“Our store rotation programme is about making sure we have the right stores, in the right place, with the right space and we’re aiming to rotate from the 247 stores we have today to 180 higher quality, higher productivity full line stores that sell our full clothing, home and food offer while also opening over 100 bigger, better food sites.
He added that the performance of recently relocated and renewed M&S stores has given the retailer confidence to go faster in the plan.
“Our investment in stores not only delivers a better experience for customers and colleagues, it boosts local communities with new job creation and will help us deliver a more sustainable estate in every sense.”
M&S recently revealed that its food business had “outperformed” over the Christmas period, with a 6.3% rise in like-for-like food sales in the 13-week period to December.
