M&S to invest 12.5 million pounds in London store estate

British high street retailer Marks & Spencer is investing 12.5 million pounds in its stores across London this year, building on the 10.3 million pound investment made in London for 2022/23.

The new round of investment will open new stores across London, from zones 1 to 6 and beyond, creating more than 200 jobs and doubling the total new square footage gained across its store estate last year.

Currently, M&S has more than 100 stores within London, including in South Woodford, Sutton, Brent Cross and Bexleyheath, as well as the West End, and this investment will enable it to “reach even more customers across the capital to deliver a bigger, better and fresher shopping experience”.

The openings include a brand-new store in Purley Way, Surrey selling clothing, homeware, and food, while the other openings will be mainly food-led with new food halls in Earlsfield and Liverpool Street Station. In addition, there will be a relaunch of its food hall in Waterloo Station through its franchise partnership.

Stuart Machin, chief executive at M&S, said in a statement: “M&S has been innovating in London for over a hundred years. We’re proud that many of our high street ‘firsts’ were born in the capital – from operating a chain of penny bazaars across London in the early 20th century to opening our first ever Simply Food here in 2001 and trailing our first new-look Foodhall design in Clapham in 2019.

“Today, a third of all M&S stores are located in London – whether in train stations, shopping centres, or high streets – and today’s investment shows that we are committed to offering shoppers in our great capital city the best of M&S for the next 100 years and beyond.”

This year’s investment builds on the success of the retailer’s renewal programme last year, which included a revamp of its food halls in Earls Court, Woolwich and Tolworth. After the update, food sales at M&S Woolwich more than doubled, while its investment in its full-line store in Kingston resulted in a food sales uplift of 25 percent and a clothing and home sales increase of 8 percent.