Velvet party wear helps festive M&S fend off high street headwinds
Marks & Spencer CEO says the retailer will try to temper higher costs and consumer caution in the months ahead
09 January 2025 - 14:27
by Paul Sandle
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Shoppers walk past a branch of Marks and Spencer in Altrincham, Britain. File photo: PHIL NOBLE/REUTERS
London — Marks & Spencer’s CEO said on Thursday he would work to mitigate higher costs and consumer caution in the months ahead, even after the retailer delivered the best results on the UK high street for the all-important Christmas season.
M&S shares, which have risen more than 30% in the past 12 months, on Thursday fell 5%, despite the better-than-expected 8.9% rise in food sales.
The increase, it said, made it the top-performing store-based grocery retailer at Christmas, the most profitable time of year for the sector.
CEO Stuart Machin said there was “much within the group’s control” to offset headwinds that all retailers faced this year, including increases in taxes and wage costs from April.
Already, he said M&S had carried the momentum from a strong trading performance throughout 2024 into Christmas.
“Sales records were broken across the business, with Food recording its biggest day and Clothing, Home & Beauty online its biggest week, but we’re not complacent — as a growth business it’s our job to break records,” he said.
Tesco, Britain’s biggest food retailer, reported a 4.1% rise in underlying Christmas sales on Thursday.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said M&S and Tesco had both pointed to booming food sales.
“But the year ahead won’t be all smooth sailing for the retail giants, as the sector gears up to battle imminent tax hikes,” he said.
M&S grew sales in clothing, home and beauty by 1.9%, outperforming a wider market decline, helped by demand for velvet party wear and its best-selling denim and knitwear categories.
The 141-year-old company gained about 0.5 percentage points in clothing, taking its share to about 11%, Machin said.
Analysts had expected the company to report a 7.8% rise in food sales and a 0.7% rise in clothing and home sales for the 13 weeks to December 28, according to a company-compiled consensus.
M&S said in November that it expected a £120m headwind from higher taxes and wage costs from April.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Velvet party wear helps festive M&S fend off high street headwinds
Marks & Spencer CEO says the retailer will try to temper higher costs and consumer caution in the months ahead
London — Marks & Spencer’s CEO said on Thursday he would work to mitigate higher costs and consumer caution in the months ahead, even after the retailer delivered the best results on the UK high street for the all-important Christmas season.
M&S shares, which have risen more than 30% in the past 12 months, on Thursday fell 5%, despite the better-than-expected 8.9% rise in food sales.
The increase, it said, made it the top-performing store-based grocery retailer at Christmas, the most profitable time of year for the sector.
CEO Stuart Machin said there was “much within the group’s control” to offset headwinds that all retailers faced this year, including increases in taxes and wage costs from April.
Already, he said M&S had carried the momentum from a strong trading performance throughout 2024 into Christmas.
“Sales records were broken across the business, with Food recording its biggest day and Clothing, Home & Beauty online its biggest week, but we’re not complacent — as a growth business it’s our job to break records,” he said.
Tesco, Britain’s biggest food retailer, reported a 4.1% rise in underlying Christmas sales on Thursday.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said M&S and Tesco had both pointed to booming food sales.
“But the year ahead won’t be all smooth sailing for the retail giants, as the sector gears up to battle imminent tax hikes,” he said.
M&S grew sales in clothing, home and beauty by 1.9%, outperforming a wider market decline, helped by demand for velvet party wear and its best-selling denim and knitwear categories.
The 141-year-old company gained about 0.5 percentage points in clothing, taking its share to about 11%, Machin said.
Analysts had expected the company to report a 7.8% rise in food sales and a 0.7% rise in clothing and home sales for the 13 weeks to December 28, according to a company-compiled consensus.
M&S said in November that it expected a £120m headwind from higher taxes and wage costs from April.
Reuters
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