The rise of M & S

After many years in the doldrums M & S are now doing really well and their rise in status and appeal is based on their food hall.

Traditionally M & S had valuable freehold sites and a reputation for quality goods. They paid suppliers within 7 days which ensured excellent supply lines. They did not import from overseas. Others did and the internet began to replace the high street.

M & S did not move with the times. They did not have as efficient a distribution resource as did their great rival Waitrose who also had the bigger range and better in-house cashiers.

Various high profile CEOs could not turn the famous brand round. The share price floundered.

However in the last year there has been a food-led revival. They acquired Ocado as a distribution operation and tarted up their stores.

In the food hall you are welcomed by a display of colourful flowers and they offer more discounted yellow label products to increase value.

The aim is not just to rival Waitrose but to transform the customer from buying party food into the weekly shop.

They say the shopping experience is now more attractive with wider aisles.

Personally I had not noticed, they still prefer automatic check outs to more personalised cashiers but no doubt about it, the quality is impressive.

In an age of soaring restaurant prices you can have a decent M & S meal with wine for under £15.

All this was show cased in a TV documentary last Wednesday on Channel 5 entitled Secrets of the Food Hall.

It was more of an advertorial as it was not too critical. One rather florid shopper boasted of the cheapo meal he could offer on discounted yellow label food.

Lord Rose, the ex-CEO, observed that the advertising campaign with the sensuous voice was “food porn” but – if it was – it worked particularly with the sales of the chocolate desert.

Another success story was the Pepper Pig range.

I would have expected the various food and shopping analysts to question whether high street shopping still has a future, whether the decline of the individual shop (such as the green grocer) is beneficial for the shopper and – as a store – why there has not been a comparable rise outside the food hall in their traditional area of ladies fashion?

Chairman Archie Norman joined M & S in 2017, roughly the same time as CEO Stuart Machin was promoted from food director.

Norman is credited with the turn-around of Asda and it is no surprise under their direction to see the shift towards food.

Finally M & S have a vision and can counter the criticism that the share price went down as the CEO’s salary rose.