Marks & Spencer are making all their toys gender neutral by Spring 2014 December 17, 2013 Retailer Marks and Spencer have committed to making all their toys gender neutral by Spring 2014. @stellacreasy Hi Stella, we’ve listened to customer feedback and by Spring next year all of our toys will be gender neutral. Thanks — M&S (@marksandspencer) December 17, 2013 The announcement follows Twitter complaints about their "Boy Stuff Marble [...]
Asos and M&S downgraded by UBS. Here’s why December 18, 2013 Some sobering news for UK clothes retailers this morning, as UBS cut its ratings for both Marks and Spencer and Asos from 'buy' to 'neutral'. M&S is trading in the red, having shed over four per cent to 434p, and is topping the FTSE 100's biggest fallers this morning. UBS said: We cut our forecasts [...]
M&S Christmas trading blighted as clothes sales continue to fall January 9, 2014 No belated Christmas cheer for Marks and Spencer – the group's just reported that like-for-like sales in the 13 weeks to 28 December were down 2.1 per cent. The quarter, it said this morning, was a challenging one, and performance was below expectations. Sales in general merchandise, which includes clothes, fell for the tenth quarter [...]
Bottom Line: From wardrobe staple to the bargain bin January 6, 2014 AS WE wait for the Marks and Spencer Christmas trading figures later this week, expectations are that its fashion sales won’t show much sign of festive cheer. If so, it needs to start the new year with a long, hard look in the mirror. It is true that general conditions won’t have helped: figures from [...]
Inside Track: Ross’s brutal shake-up could prove painful for taxpayers January 29, 2014 ROSS’S Brutal Shake-up – come next month, that will be the most appropriate use of the initials of Britain’s most troubled lender. After Monday’s kitchen and bathroom sinking all rolled into one, it’s not difficult to see why. McEwan’s predecessor as chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Stephen Hester, was fond of describing [...]
Inside Track: Bank of America Merrill Lynch closes 2013 with a flurry December 12, 2013 THE timing appeared so impeccable, you almost felt it must have been staged. Just as Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s head of equity capital markets was running through a presentation on how the bank has gained market share over the year, one of the mobiles on the desk in front of him rang. With that [...]
M&S targeting booming India retail markets November 12, 2013 RETAILER Marks & Spencer is looking overseas to try to stem a steady decline in clothing sales, focusing on India to replicate a move towards more stylish fashions that has failed to convince consumers at home. Britain’s biggest clothing retailer said yesterday it planned to make India its biggest foreign market, increasing its store count [...]
Analysts cut forecasts amid fears discounts will hurt profits December 18, 2013 MARKS & SPENCER and a raft of other major high street names were hit by downgrades from analysts yesterday amid fears that discounting and low wage growth will take its toll on spending this Christmas. HSBC and Oriel both slashed their forecasts for M&S yesterday, warning that weak consumer confidence and further promotional activity was [...]
A DIY investment price war could be on the way January 15, 2014 Imagine if Sainsbury’s or Tesco made you pay to enter their supermarkets and buy their milk and bread, but promised that the milk and bread would be much cheaper than before. That slightly dystopian vision is what occurred to UK money management industry last year, after regulators decided the relationship between suppliers and distributors was [...]
Arcadia’s Philip Green sets up for a food fight November 14, 2013 SIR PHILIP Green is plotting to take on supermarkets and long-time rival Marks & Spencer by launching food outlets in up to 150 of his BHS stores. The retail tycoon said yesterday that he has drawn up plans for convenience food stores within BHS and will make a decision by the end of the year [...]