London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 24, 2025

Shopping may never be the same again, says M&S

Shopping may never be the same again, says M&S

Customers "may never shop the same way again" after the coronavirus crisis, Marks and Spencer's boss has said.

"Whilst some customer habits will return to normal, others have changed forever," Steve Rowe said.

The pandemic has driven several changes, including a shift to online, customers cooking more from scratch and buying more casual clothing.

T-shirt bras and bathroom products online sales have risen, while it is barely selling any suits or ties.

The retailer has also found that as shoppers are visiting the shops less, they are planning what to eat further in advance, and also buying more herbs and whole vegetables.

It said that customers are buying bigger product packs, such as of strawberries or chicken. Sales of frozen items are also up by 75% on the year in the UK.

M&S added that online shoppers were now browsing earlier in the day, between 15:00 and 17:00.

As more customers work from home, desktop visits were also up 38% in comparison with the same period last year.

But M&S is one of the few big food retailers without its own internet-based delivery service.

This has hampered the chain as customers have needed to purchase items online during lockdown if they are self-isolating, for example.

However, the retailer's partnership with Ocado starts in September this year, replacing the online grocer's existing deal with Waitrose.

In a new announcement, M&S said the delivery service would also include over a thousand non-food items meaning customers will soon be able to buy cushions or underwear alongside their eggs or bread.

Mr Rowe said that Ocado's strong performance during lockdown "further reinforced" the value of the deal for delivering groceries.

The impact of the virus lockdown has driven "effects and aftershocks" in the retail sector that would "endure for the coming year and beyond," Mr Rowe added.

Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, said: "Covid-19 has accelerated lots of consumer trends and it may just be the catalyst required to accelerate Marks and Spencer's transformation into a 21st century retailer.

"In particular it looks as though M&S has learnt just how important online is - so it's making its Ocado venture more central to the business."


Transformation plan


M&S was already undergoing a transformation plan led by its chief executive Steve Rowe which included cutting costs and closing some stores.

The firm said that due to the pandemic, those measures would be sped up under a programme called "Never The Same Again".

Those include buying clothing from fewer core suppliers, reducing the clothing and home ranges, as well as "the replacement of ageing stores".

"The trauma of the Covid-19 crisis has galvanised our colleagues to secure the future of the business," said Mr Rowe.


'Mountain of unsold stock'


The company has been facing increasing competition from fashion giants such as Primark on the High Street and Asos on the internet in recent years.

In the year to March, M&S said its clothing sales fell by 6.2%, whereas its food sales were up 1.9%.

To add to its problems, M&S's non-food stores have been forced to shut under the lockdown measures.

As a result, it faces a "mounting backlog of unsold stock" in its warehouses, it said.

Clothing and homeware sales fell by 75% in the six weeks to 9 May. Food sales also fell, by 8.8%, although M&S said many of its Simply Food stores were trading strongly.


Sales hit


The firm said that lockdown measures, social distancing and lower consumer demand were "likely to continue through the year", adding that the coronavirus pandemic means that its performance over the next year is difficult to predict.

It is working on a scenario that assumes a sales hit of £2.1bn over the next year across clothing, home, food and international sales.

Sophie Lund-Yates, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Overall, M&S was facing challenges before coronavirus and these have simply been exacerbated.

"Within the difficulties there are real opportunities too, and the group appears to have a lot of the right ideas, but the next chapter really needs to be about execution."

Its comments came as M&S said its profits for the year to March had dropped by more than 20% to £403m, from £511m in the previous year, as its troubled clothing business continued to struggle.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
×