M&S profits have skyrocketed 58% as its strategy to reshape the business delivers strong sales growth across its clothing and food divisions.
The high street retailer insisted it was confident of further progress in its new financial year and that the positive results reflected “the beginnings of a new M&S”.
After two decades of unsuccessful turnarounds, the retailer’s latest attempt is finally bearing fruit thanks to a major investment programme to improve the quality and value of clothing and food, an overhaul of its store estate and an upgrade of its technology and ecommerce operations.
M&S reported profit before tax and adjusting items came in ahead of market expectations at £716.4m in the 52 weeks to 30 March, up 58% from £453.3m in the previous year.
Sales jumped 9% from £11.9bn to £13.1bn, driven by a 13% surge in food sales to £8.2bn and 5.3% increase of clothing and home to £3.9bn.
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Chief executive Stuart Machin said: “Both [food and clothing and home] businesses have now delivered 12 consecutive quarters of sales growth and this trading momentum gives us wind in our sails, and confidence that our plan is working. We are becoming more relevant, to more people, more of the time.”
He said the retailer’s investment in store rotation “is beginning to pay off”, with the new stores and renewals “performing ahead of forecast and attracting new customers”.
M&S opened six full line stores – which sell clothing, home and food – and closed 12, with the new locations “substantially outperforming” the closed ones. It also opened eight stand-alone food stores during the year.
Machin said the improvement in performance “means we have the headroom and confidence to invest for future growth”.
He added: “We need to move faster and be ruthlessly challenging on the areas where progress has been slower, building a more effective digital and technology infrastructure, accelerating the move to a truly personalised customer experience, and resetting priorities in international.”
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