In Grocery Gazette’s new Meet the Tastemaker content series, we speak to the innovation specialists at the UK’s leading supermarkets and food retailers to find out where they find inspiration for new products and how they transform the shelves of UK grocery stores. To kickstart the series, we speak with M&S Food product development manager Marie Ford.

The past few months has seen M&S doubling down on its new and improved ranges as investment into innovation saw food sales jump 8.1% in the first half of 2024.

Meanwhile, many of the upmarket retailer’s products have gone viral on social media, from the Big Daddy chocolate bar to the Chicken Caesar Dip as shoppers look to M&S for new and exciting innovations.

From visiting 50 Naples restaurants to develop the perfect ready-made pizza to the saying ‘if in doubt, add quality in’ emblazoned in neon on the team’s office wall, Ford tells Grocery Gazette how M&S is driving innovation and flavour in its product ranges.

Tell us about your role at M&S

I lead the development for all convenience meals including global and traditional meals, pizza, snacking and soup. My team is responsible for driving innovation and launching new products.

We work closely with our suppliers to identify trends and produce products that fulfil the needs of our customers. M&S food is built on the foundation of innovation and every day we challenge ourselves to create the next big thing.

Where do you find inspiration for new products and ranges?

Our team spends a lot of time travelling and visiting restaurants to find inspiration. Social media has also become a huge influence and plays a pivotal role in shaping food innovations by influencing consumer preferences and industry trends.

Social media also offers insights into what consumers like and dislike, which is crucial in helping to refine our offering. I find myself scrolling through social media most evenings inspired by the breadth of content, which makes you realise how passionate people are about food. I often find that ideas can be sparked by the smallest things.

The Big Daddy chocolate bar and Chicken Caesar Dip are among the upmarket retailer’s products which have gone viral on social media this year.

We have a fantastic trends team who keep up to date with emerging trends for ingredients, trending terms or health initiatives which are likely to be meaningful for our customers. The team and I also spend a lot of time challenging each other to dream up big ideas, and for me that’s the best part of the job!

How do you choose which categories to innovate? Is there a particular focus right now?

As our CEO says, we have a spirit of ‘positive dissatisfaction’ so we’re always looking at how we can do things better. As part of that we have a continual improvement programme where we look at how we can drive innovation.

We’re obsessed with quality and our mantra is, ‘If in doubt, add quality in’ – we actually have a neon sign in our office to that effect!

As part of this we have two priorities in the product development: Quality and Innovation. Our quality upgrades programme looks at key categories to make sure M&S products are the best quality – this year we’ll upgrade 1,000 products and it’s continuous as we always want M&S Food to stand out as the absolute best of the best. For example, this Christmas, we’ve upgraded our Collection mince pies with caramelised sugar to the pastry and a hint of black pepper in the mincemeat for a warmer flavour. We’ve also double wrapped our pigs in blankets so they are perfect every time.

Secondly, innovation and this is a really exciting part of the job. Innovation is part of our DNA at M&S and we launch hundreds of new products every year (1,400 this year!). We’re all really proud of our Christmas range this year and the ideas for some of my favourite products have come from all over. Stuart (our CEO) visited a German market and tasted White Mulled Wine which we’re launching for the first time and some of the team were inspired after a trip to America which led to the creation of our first to market Caramel Almond Muddles and Peppermint Bark which are made in small batches by a family bakery in Somerset.

The success of our limited edition Chicken Katsu Sando which we launched this summer, inspired our Christmas sando – a fusion of festive flavours with British chicken goujons, cranberry chutney, gochujang mayo and gravy mayo – an absolute must try!

What are some of the products you’re working on now?

We relaunched our Indian Meals range, as well as our iconic Gastropub range last month, both of which were big transformation projects. It’s a very exciting time for Gastropub. Not only are we turning 20 but we’ve also brought on board Tom Kerridge to create completely delicious new dishes to join the menu.

Gastropub was our first restaurant-quality range, so it feels fitting that it’s become Tom’s first retail collaboration too. The new and revamped recipes in our Gastropub range really are market-leading.

M&S chef ambassador Tom Kerridge

If you had the time, you could make them at home using the same ingredients from our Foodhalls, from our West Country Brue Valley Butter and Cornish Cove Cheddar, to wines from our shop shelves. But we know that often isn’t the reality, so instead here are our favourite, comforting, convenient classics, from our kitchen to yours – with a little help from our favourite chef.

What do you think your best-selling product will be this year?

I think our Gastro Pub collaboration with Tom Kerridge will drive some key winners. The products are exceptionally high quality, and I have no doubt they will be popular. British Beef Cheeks by Tom is a particular favourite of mine. The cheeks are slow braised in red wine and served with a herby dumpling and star anise glazed carrot – it is nothing short of delicious!

What is one product you wish you’d created?

There are so many I could list from the M&S Archive. The Chicken Kyiv is iconic at M&S and was developed by Cathy Chapman many years ago. I would have loved to have been at the start of the M&S Meals journey too and been the first person to bring the humble lasagne to the foodhall.

How do you ensure that any new products are of the standard and credentials your shoppers would expect?

Quality is something we are extremely proud of at M&S and something we work very hard to maintain. We are committed to carefully sourcing our raw materials, believing that exceptional flavour begins with the finest ingredients. We spend time understanding each element of our products, as even the smallest deviation can change its flavour.

For example, as part of our Indian transformation we worked with our supplier to go right back to basics on the recipes. It has been a real labour of love for me.

We’ve taken inspiration from traditional, regional recipes and mirrored cooking techniques from regions like Kerala, Goa and Old Delhi. All the onions are freshly chopped and then caramelised for a deeper flavour, then the spices are slowly heated in oil. It’s simple changes like these which bring the expertise of our M&S chefs into our customers’ homes, in an easy and convenient way.

In June, M&S launched the new Collection pizza range and visited over 50 restaurants in Naples to try different ingredients. Is this how you approach all new ranges?

Yes, we take that approach to every product we launch. To be the best you must master your craft and immerse yourself in it. On top of visiting restaurants, we also worked with our suppliers to change the processes and specifications in our supply base to recreate the authentic taste we experienced in Italy. Pushing boundaries isn’t easy!

Many other brands follow your lead, how do you ensure your flavours and products remain unique?

Our sourcing and raw material standards help us stay a huge step ahead of our competition. The care and passion our suppliers and producers have for their raw materials gives us product that is hard to copy. Starting with great quality raw materials is the foundation of great flavour, the other key things needed are time and technique. Our meals are built on the foundations of restaurant and home cooking techniques.

What do you think the biggest food and flavour trends will be in 2025 and how are you taping into these at M&S?

From a flavour perspective the hot and sweet flavour movement will continue to be important, I love that combination and how it plays with the senses. In terms of food trends, I also expect comforting mashups to be something we continue to see on TikTok such as topped hash browns which will certainly be something I eat and experiment with at home.