‘M&S has failed you for 20 years’

As it launches a bold turnaround after another fall in sales – a brutal admission from the new chairman

THE new chairman of M&S made an astonishing admission that the firm has failed for two decades – as the retailer began a major shake-up.

Archie Norman, in post for just 70 days, said M&S had failed to keep up with rivals and blamed its failure on the previous management.

He said that while top business people, such as Sir Stuart Rose and Marc Bolland, have led the company over past 20 years, it had failed to tackle changes in the industry.

M&S has been hit hard by changes in shopping habits, which have seen rivals such as Zara and Primark steal market shares. More recently, younger shoppers have been drawn to fast-fashion outlets such as Asos and Boohoo.

In a call to arms, Norman embraced the strategy that had been put in place by current chief executive Steve Rowe ,and advocated more change, praising Rowe for ‘ grasping a few nettles and slaughtering a few sacred cows’.

Speaking yesterday Norman said: ‘There have been many highly capable people in the leadership team for M&S, but over not five years but probably 15 and maybe even 20 years, the business has failed to change in line with the customer and as quickly as the competition.

‘That failure is not to do with the strategy or the intellectual approach nearly as much as it is to do with the organisation, the culture and the capability.’

Norman joined as chairman in September and is best known for turning Asda around in the 1990s. His arrival has sparked a radical shake-up of M&S’s turnaround strategy amid disappointing half-year results.

The retailer posted a 5.3pc fall in half-year profits to £219.1m in the six months to the end of September and a 0.7pc dip in clothing and food sales. Fullprice sales increased 5.3pc in the period. Food sales, once a solid performer, were down 0.1pc in the second quarter. M&S is pinning its hopes on Christmas, a typically strong trading period, to drive its latest push.

It may axe more stores, will reduce womenswear space and will increase its focus on children’s clothes, underwear and men’s suits.

Rowe, who has axed poor-selling ranges and scaled back on promotions, said M&S is focusing on improving prices across its food ranges, and is seeking to make its ‘best’ and ‘better’ lines more affordable.

It’s also trying to appeal more to families by introducing family-sized desserts and meals, and has made sure this year’s Christmas range is £10 cheaper than the year before.

M&S said it will be ramping up the speed of its store closures and scaling back on its expansion of Simply Food stores, after admitting it had misjudged the market for the grocery outlets.

It also announced its finance boss Helen Weir would be leaving to pursue a portfolio career.

Weir, who left John Lewis to take up the role in 2015, will stay in post until a successor is found. Rowe denied that the change in strategy was down to the input of Norman.

He said: ‘Archie and I get on well. We’re different sides of the same coin, it’s great to have him in the business.’