M&S set to report drop in annual profits

MARKS & SPENCER is expected to report a 7.5 per cent drop in annual profit on Tuesday, a third consecutive fall after a three-year investment plan failed to revive its underperforming non-food business.

Over the last three years, chief executive Marc Bolland has spent £2.3bn addressing decades of under-investment to transform M&S into an international retailer reaching customers through stores, the web and mobile devices.

Though he has spent heavily on redesigning products and stores, logistics and a new internet platform that went live in February, a new clothing team he set up in 2012 has so far failed to deliver a significant pick-up in sales.