Marks & Spencer to invest 30 million pounds into Scottish stores

Building on its string of investments into its retail network, British retailer Marks & Spencer has now said it is planning to invest 30 million pounds into bricks and mortar stores across Scotland.

Among the plans, spanning the next 18 months, will be the opening of over five new locations, supporting over 6,500 jobs throughout the country, the department store said in a release.

A total of 15 million pounds will also go towards the Marks & Spencer Aberdeen Union Square store, which will be expanding to almost double the size next year as it introduces bigger clothing and beauty departments, as well as a food hall.

On completion, due spring 2025, Aberdeen Union Square will be the fourth biggest Marks & Spencer in Scotland and will result in the closure of its St Nicholas Street space, the relocation of which has already been shared with the workforce, with permanent employees to then transfer to Union Square.

A new food hall will also be added to the Linlithgow location later this month, while new full-line stores are expected to open in Dundee’s Gallagher Retail Park in summer 2024 and in Largs in early 2025.

In a release, the retailer said the investment reflected its efforts to become “the UK’s leading omnichannel retailer”, a strategy that has been in place the past few years through a store rotation programme across the UK dedicated to introducing higher quality full line locations in the “right places”.

Last year, Marks & Spencer had already set about a 500 million pounds multi-year investment into the programme, with the hope of achieving its targets in three years.