M&S invests £12.5m into London store estate

M&S is investing £12.5m into its stores across London in the coming year, in a move that will create 200 jobs and double the total new square footage secured across its store estate last year. 

Over the last year, the group invested £10.3m into London, creating 200 jobs, meaning the latest move will lead to a total investment of £23m and the creation of 400 jobs in the capital.

As part of the growth plan, M&S will open a new store in Purley Way this week, and later this year will open a new foodhall in Earslfield as well as undergo a full renewal of its Victoria Cardinal Place store. It will also open a new foodhall in Liverpool Street Station and relaunch its Waterloo Station site through franchise partnerships. 

The group’s food market share in London is currently 4.1%, higher than other cities in the UK. It has over 100 owned stores within the city, and said that this latest investment will enable the retailer to “reach even more customers across the capital to deliver a bigger, better and fresher shopping experience”.

Stuart Machin, CEO of M&S, said: “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 trialling 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.”