Marks and Spencer will close eight stores across the UK in the coming months, it has been revealed.
Commercial Road in Bournemouth is one of the stores set to go, and as well as this, M&S has announced five other stores that will close by the end of April and eight that are proposed for closure.
A spokesperson for the company said the closure is part of M&S’s programme to modernise its UK store estate to better meet the changing needs of customers.
Sacha Berendji, director of Retail at Marks & Spencer, said: “We’re committed to transforming M&S for our customers, colleagues and shareholders. Stores will always be an integral part of our customer experience, alongside M&S.com, but we have to ensure we have the right offer in the right locations.
“We don’t want any colleagues to leave M&S and we will work with each colleague individually on what is best for them as we endeavour to give everyone a role. However, we accept in some cases we may have to consider redundancy.
“We believe these changes are vital for the future of M&S and we will continue to accelerate the programme, taking tough but necessary decisions, as we focus on making M&S special.”
Aaron Spicer, M&S Head of Region for Wessex, said: “Closing our store on Commercial Road is not a decision we have taken lightly. We value the loyalty of our customers in the area and know that some of them will be disappointed by the news.
“I’m pleased our colleagues from the store will be staying with us and we are committed to delivering the very best of M&S for our customers.”
M&S has also reassessed and reduced its Simply Food opening programme, and now only plans to open a total of 36 owned and franchise stores over the next six months. New locations will include Broadstone, Streatham Hill and St Albans.
These stores will sell M&S food and drink and offer Collect in Store for Clothing & Home. The 36 stores will create 1,200 management and customer assistant roles.
This update follows M&S’s announcement in November that it is accelerating its UK store estate plan after the better than expected levels of sales transfer from closures and plans to grow online sales.
M&S currently has 1,025 stores in the UK: 302 Clothing, Home and Food, 684 Food-only and 39 Outlets.
Full list of M&S stores to close:
Birkenhead
Bournemouth
Durham
Fforestfach
Putney
Redditch
Proposed for closure:
Andover
Basildon
Bridlington
Denton (Outlet)
Falmouth
Fareham
Keighley
Stockport
Relocating:
Newry
Dover
Express.co.uk has contacted Marks and Spencer for further comment.
