M&S is not expecting to launch any more clothing-only boutiques after testing a trial store format.
The food and clothing specialist opened a fashion boutique in London’s Battersea Power Station in December 2024, with the store serving as an experiment in attracting younger clothes shoppers.
However, as the business remodels its full-line store estate and attempts to boost online fashion sales, M&S is set to prioritise these goals, Retail Week reported.
Speaking to the publication, M&S CEO Stuart Machin said: “We did it [Battersea] as a trial, just to see. Would I say it’s working? It’s in line with our expectations, it’s doing okay but it’s not centre of our strategy.
“Centre of our fashion, home and beauty strategy is growing online to a big business, 50% of our sales while holding our stores flat.”
Related Story
He added: “And centre of our strategy is modernising our store estate. We haven’t yet got a fashion, home and beauty renewal format like we have in food but we’re well on our way.”
Machin said that its Pantheon shop on Oxford Street, which is currently having its clothing proposition upgraded and will reopen in May, would mark a “start” in that direction.
He said: “It doesn’t mean it’s the right answer, but we will take elements from Pantheon and then we will start to build a blueprint for fashion, home and beauty, but our focus is online and full-line stores.”
M&S revealed that profits had more than halved in its half year results yesterday (5 November), due to the cyber attack it was subjected to earlier this year.
The 26 weeks to 27 September 2025 saw the retailer make an adjusted profit before tax of £184m, compared to £413.1m for the same period the previous year.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
