About M&S

For 125 years M&S has been trusted by customers to offer high quality products at great value. We are ‘Your M&S’, having grown from a Penny Bazaar stall to become the UK’s leading retailer of quality clothing, food and home products. With more than 21 million UK customers, we are also an expanding international force, now in 40 territories. A team of 78,000 people and over 2,000 suppliers form the bedrock of our business, ensuring our brand will continue to offer Quality, Value, Service, Innovation and Trust.

Our core UK business

With an annual turnover of £8.16bn our UK business has a broadly even
split between General Merchandise (clothing and home) and Food.

General Merchandise £3.9bn sales (-3.5%)

With more than 1 in 10 clothing items bought from us, we are the UK’s largest clothing retailer and the first choice for stylish, well-made and great value clothes for the whole family. We lead the market in womenswear, lingerie and menswear and have an expanding kidswear and home business.

Market share (value)*

10.7%

Market share (volume)*

11.2%

*Source: FashionTrak

Food £4.2bn sales (-0.1%)

We are the UK’s leading provider of high quality food for every occasion and appetite. We sell everything from fresh produce and groceries, to partly-prepared meals and ready meals; all at outstanding quality, freshness and value. This is while retaining our commitment to the highest standards of innovation, ethical sourcing and healthy eating.

Market share*

3.9%

*Source: TNS Worldpanel

Our M&S Direct business

M&S Direct £324m sales (+19%)

M&S Direct is key to improving customer convenience and service, helping us to reach a new generation of shoppers. We are on target to achieve £500m in sales by 2010/11.

M&S Direct

E-commerce website

Home catalogue

Flowers & wine delivery

Hampers

Food to Order

lunchtogo

Our International business

International £898m sales (+25.9%)

With a portfolio of owned and franchised stores, our International business is on plan to achieve 15 to 20% of Group revenues by 2010/11. In 2008/09 sales benefited from an additional 32 stores joining the chain.
We now have 296 stores in 40 territories.

Our UK property portfolio

Over the last three years, we have transformed our UK stores into bright and contemporary destinations with a range of hospitality options. We are also more convenient with 668 stores across the UK, including 75 new stores opened in 2008/09.

668 UK stores:

10 Premiere

43 Major

29 Retail Park

209 High Street

39 Outlets

156 Simply Food wholly-owned

182 Simply Food franchises

Integrating Plan A

We established Plan A in January 2007, setting out 100 rigorous social and environmental targets to help us become a better business by 2012. Customer support has helped us achieve world-class progress in: reducing carbon emissions and waste to landfill, sustainable sourcing, ethical trading and promoting healthy lifestyles.