Marks & Spencer bounces back with £1billion sales surge thanks to younger shoppers

Marks & ­Spencer has rediscovered its spark at last as the high street favourite revealed a more than £1billion surge in sales yesterday.

Its comeback is partly down to younger shoppers embracing its fashion and lingerie. The company said 30% of women buying its underwear are under the age of 30. The retailer has come a long way from when some questioned if the 140-year-old ­business could survive in the face of cut-throat competition both online and in store.

In 2018, newly installed no-nonsense chairman Archie Norman called the industry giant a “burning platform”, with the former Tory MP adding: “We don’t have a God-given right to exist and unless we change… in a decade to come there will be no M&S.”

It seems the chain will not only be around – it could get back to making profits of £1bn a year, a feat it has only achieved twice. M&S sold more than £13bn worth of products last year. Profits rose 58% to £716m, the highest in a decade.

So why has this fightback – under previous boss Steve Rowe and now current chief executive Stuart Machin – working when so many before have failed? There is no silver bullet but it has been a combination of getting much better at having the right products at the right time at the right price, broadening its appeal, plus making some very tough decisions.

The high street store has revealed a surge of more than £1billion in sales

Marks & ­Spencer has succeeded in broadening its appeal

The last of those included M&S shutting a wave of stores across the country. Clothing has been why loyal shoppers have flocked to its branches over the years. And it has been getting much sharper on the design front after drab choices and what was seen to be a drop in its famed quality reputation.

But in the past, even when it got it right, it got it wrong. In 2019 there was what some branded “Jeansgate”, when M&S’s buyers failed to order enough of a collection promoted by TV presenter Holly Willoughby. It led to shoppers not being able to get what they wanted, a cardinal sin in retail.

Other celebrity tie-ups have been a hit, including its lingerie range with Hollywood star Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Underwear has also underpinned its success over the years. The chain sold 60 million pairs of knickers last year – equivalent to 114 a minute – and has a record-breaking 38.2% share of the bra market.

Denim has also been a big seller, with more than 1.7 million items bought last year – up 53% – including 36,000 midi-skirts. A £19.50 crew neck cardigan was its best-selling women’s knitwear line, shifting 574,000 pieces. Elsewhere, the Nobody’s Child brand, in which M&S owns 27% and includes a range by TV star Fearne Cotton, had a sales jump of 23%. Actress Sienna Miller was also the face of its autumn campaign.

All are helping the high street stalwart lure new younger customers. Lauren Goodwin-Grafton, the Mirror ’s Fashion Editor, said: “M&S has managed to re-affirm itself as a leader in the fashion market, catering to not only core customers (35-55) but also capturing the hearts of younger style hunters and influencers.

“The summer collections are trend-led, budget-friendly, age-less, and best of all you’ll find some ridiculously good designer alternatives that won’t break the bank.” Mr Machin, paid £2.5million in pay and perks last year and whose career has included stints at Sainsbury’s, BHS, Tesco and Asda, yesterday claimed it had “wind in its sails”.

He insisted its plans this time were “starting to pay off”. Like others, the retailer is harnessing the power of social media. Hollywood icon Dame Joan Collins took to Instagram this week to share a video of her drinking a latte in an M&S cafe after a busy day shopping.

Mr Machin claimed more than 32 millon people – 62% of the UK population – shop at M&S, and it had one million customers more than a year ago. “Two years into our plan to ‘reshape for growth’ we can see the beginnings of a new M&S,” he added.

The retailer said that it was in its best financial health for nearly 30 years, as it revealed plans to begin paying a ­dividend for the first time since 2019. Russ Mould, investment director at City firm AJ Bell, said: “The turnaround story has been years in the making and it finally looks like the retailer has cracked it. Food products are flying off the shelves and it has at long last struck at chord with shoppers on the clothing side.”