M&S Case Study
M&S (A)
Marks & Spencer (known as M&S) is a famous
British retail chain selling clothes, food, household goods and furniture from over 450 shops in the UK and some 200 managed under franchise in 30 territories mostly in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the Far East as well as wholly-owned stores in the Republic of Ireland and Hong Kong. In 2007 it had a turnover of over £7 billion and employed over 70,000 people. M&S’s origins come from a chain of ‘penny bazaars’ (market stalls selling everything for one penny) set up in the late 1800s by a
Russian-born Polish-Jewish immigrant, Michael Marks in Leeds with a £5 loan from
Issac Dewhirst, a wholesaler. Interestingly Dewhirst went into manufacturing and remains the biggest supplier of M&S to this day. Marks’ opened his first store below his home in Manchester in 1893. He went into partnership with Thomas Spencer
(then a Dewhirst cashier) and the first Marks and Spencer store was opened in the prestigious Cross Arcade in Leeds in1904. After the death of the founders, Simon
Marks (son of Michael) took over as Chairman and started to work with his friend
Israel Sieff. Together they turned M&S into the iconic British retailer it is today.
The original success was based upon a number of ideas that meant M&S, although never cheapest in the market place, offered high quality but most important of all very good value for money. They did this by adopting the then revolutionary idea of buying directly from manufacturers and placing their own label on goods - originally the St
Michael brand (registered in 1928). By the 1950s all goods were sold under this label. By then it was known for selling only British made goods, entering into long term partnerships with British manufacturers which required them to commit solely to manufacturing M&S products. It was also known for its policy of accepting the return of unwanted goods, giving a full cash refund if the receipt was shown. It’s first overseas store was opened in 1975 and it
Marks & Spencer (known as M&S) is a famous
British retail chain selling clothes, food, household goods and furniture from over 450 shops in the UK and some 200 managed under franchise in 30 territories mostly in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the Far East as well as wholly-owned stores in the Republic of Ireland and Hong Kong. In 2007 it had a turnover of over £7 billion and employed over 70,000 people. M&S’s origins come from a chain of ‘penny bazaars’ (market stalls selling everything for one penny) set up in the late 1800s by a
Russian-born Polish-Jewish immigrant, Michael Marks in Leeds with a £5 loan from
Issac Dewhirst, a wholesaler. Interestingly Dewhirst went into manufacturing and remains the biggest supplier of M&S to this day. Marks’ opened his first store below his home in Manchester in 1893. He went into partnership with Thomas Spencer
(then a Dewhirst cashier) and the first Marks and Spencer store was opened in the prestigious Cross Arcade in Leeds in1904. After the death of the founders, Simon
Marks (son of Michael) took over as Chairman and started to work with his friend
Israel Sieff. Together they turned M&S into the iconic British retailer it is today.
The original success was based upon a number of ideas that meant M&S, although never cheapest in the market place, offered high quality but most important of all very good value for money. They did this by adopting the then revolutionary idea of buying directly from manufacturers and placing their own label on goods - originally the St
Michael brand (registered in 1928). By the 1950s all goods were sold under this label. By then it was known for selling only British made goods, entering into long term partnerships with British manufacturers which required them to commit solely to manufacturing M&S products. It was also known for its policy of accepting the return of unwanted goods, giving a full cash refund if the receipt was shown. It’s first overseas store was opened in 1975 and it