MARKS and Spencer is to close another store tomorrow, but it’s actually good news for shoppers.
The closure is part of dozens expected over the next five years, with more set to occur in the coming months.
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The M&S store on Birmingham city centre’s High Street will bring the shutters down for the final time on Monday (November 6).
The store will close forever at 4pm.
However, a brand new store in Birmingham’s Bullring is opening to shoppers for the first time on Tuesday (November 7).
New flagship M&S stores and Foodhalls have popped up in several major UK cities this year.
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Cities like Leeds and Liverpool have already become home to new M&S stores this year.
Nine openings in November include six new stores plus three store renewals totalling £80 million investment in bricks and mortar retail in:
- Birmingham – November 7
- Uckfield – November 8
- Lakeside – November 15
- Earlsfield – November 16
- Barnsley – November 28
- Trafford Centre – November 30
M&S will also open new or refurbished stores in five more locations in the coming months:
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- Camberley – November 20
- Handforth – November 23
- Newcastle Foodhall – November 29
- Wrexham – December 1
- Manchester Trafford Centre – Winter 2023
- Linlithgow – January 2024
- Largs – Spring 2024
- Dundee – Spring 2024
The openings are part of M&S’ aim to become the UK’s leading omnichannel retailer, with its store rotation programme at the centre of this ambition.
The retailer is aiming to rotate from a base of 247 stores to 180 higher quality, higher productivity full-line stores that sell its Clothing, Home and Food ranges, while also opening over 100 bigger, better food sites, by 2028.
Earlier this year, M&S revealed that it will permanently shut ten of its stores and relocate more shops this year.
The full list of M&S closures that have taken place so far this year can be seen below:
- East Kilbride – closed in February
- Fenchurch Street, London – March
- Meadowbank Retail Park in Edinburgh – April
- Castleford – April
- Bolton – April
- Cardiff – April
- Manchester – August
- Swindon – October
M&S plans to operate 180 full-line and 400 food halls in the next five years.
The new openings will bring investment in new stores to £480million, M&S said in May.
It will also be investing in its digital offering, with the rollout of click-and-collect to 130 stores across the UK.
Meanwhile, M&S isn’t the only retailer looking to expand.
Primark recently opened a new shop in Salisbury in September and completed a refurbishment on its store in Edinburgh’s Princes Street.
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Plus, bargain retailer Poundland has opened dozens of new sites.
M&S’ first Christmas advert has also arrived and it features well-known TV and movie stars.
