Marks & Spencer to axe dozens of high street stores in Rowe revamp
The new boss of Marks & Spencer (M&S) is to axe dozens of UK stores and stop selling clothing in others in a radical shake-up of its high street presence aimed at persuading the City that he can revive the fortunes of Britain’s best-known retailer.
Sky News has learnt that Steve Rowe, who took the helm at M&S earlier this year, will announce next week that a substantial chunk of its UK store portfolio is to be reorganised, a move that will include the outright closure of a significant number of shops.
Sources said on Friday that the closures, which will take place over several years, would number "in the low dozens", while other stores will see space reallocated from clothing to its more successful food operations.
A number of other stores are expected to be relocated.
That will mean M&S's clothing range being sold in a substantially smaller number of shops, which one retail analyst described as "a seismic shift" for the company.
I took one look at their prices the other week and walked straight back out again.