Lack of cheer for Marks & Spencer
Marks & Spencer has had a disappointing Christmas and New Year, with clothing and footwear sales dropping by 9.3%.
Sales of home furnishings and food went up in the 16 weeks to January 20, but this was still regarded as a poor Christmas performance.
Chairman and chief executive Luc Vandevelde says the company did not achieve the results he was looking for over the Christmas period.
"Food and Home sales made further progress, but sales of clothing were poor. The overall appeal of our adult clothing ranges was simply not good enough," Vandevelde says.
"The cost-effectiveness of our buying is improving and benefits are being seen in an improved margin. We also move into spring with greater flexibility in our buying practices that will start to address the significant over-commitment problems we have faced in past seasons.
"But I am under no illusion as to the main challenge facing the business," Vandevelde says. "We must offer our customers adult clothing ranges of consistently better design and appeal. I am absolutely committed to making this happen."
On a like-for-like basis, excluding income from new stores, the group's sales fell by 5.1% in the 16 weeks to January 20 and by 2.3% in the critical eight week Christmas trading period to the same date.
The group says that while the number of shoppers coming into its stores increased over Christmas, "the inconsistent appeal of our adult clothing ranges caused lower than expected sales" and led to excess stock and higher marking down of goods in an effort to clear them.
Total clothing sales fell by 9.3% in the 16 weeks to January 20 and by 4.8% in the eight-week Christmas shopping period.
However, food sales looked better, with like-for-like sales ahead 2.1% in the 16 weeks and 2.3% in the eight weeks. The other bright spot was in sales of home furnishings, which lifted by 9.5% in the 16 weeks and 6.7% in the eight week period.
