M&S

[Rhiannon]

I haven’t shopped with them for years, except for buying a salad at Liverpool St once. Their online delivery is rubbish compared to Next and John Lewis, their clothes are dated and not great value and I can get comparable food in Tesco and Waitrose.

My mum sends flowers from their online florists which are pretty good, but otherwise, what is M&S actually for?

[wigginhall]

It's left a big hole in our High St.  Ah well, there are plenty of charity shops and Poundlands.  Things are looking up!

[Rhiannon]

But why has it left a hole? People don’t buy pants and lunches from charity shops and pound stores.

Actually charity shops and pound stores have something in common: you never know what you’ll find in them. I’ve bought a Karen Mullen frock and a Cairn vase on the former, and a set of artists’ acrylics in the latter lately. They are fun to shop in. M&S isn’t fun.

And as a woman, buying pants should be fun.

[Aruntraveller]

The decimation of the High Street continues apace.

I look forward to the day when all residential streets are clogged to a standstill with white vans trying to deliver small items packaged in big boxes. Progress. I think not.

[Harrowby Hall]

One of M&S's problems is that it does not know who its customer is. It appears to believe that there is a solid "middle class" prepared to pay more for fairly standard goods than the hoi polloi, and that the aspirational hoi polloi will eventually become customers. (It shares this view with the groceries arm of the John Lewis Partnership - Waitrose - which is also reducing its overall size in the retail marketplace.)

One thing that M&S must get its corporate mind around is that its main competitor is not Harvey Nicholls but Primark.

[Rhiannon]

The decimation of the High Street continues apace.

I look forward to the day when all residential streets are clogged to a standstill with white vans trying to deliver small items packaged in big boxes. Progress. I think not.

Actually the staples that M&S are famous for - socks and nightclothes - I pick up in Tesco. Same quality, if not better, but a lot cheaper.

The High St where I live is vibrant and bustling, but it has a lively mix of independent shops alongside chains and markets. I think that high streets that are reliant on large department stores are the most vulnerable as what can be done with the space once they are gone?

[Aruntraveller]

The High St where I live is vibrant and bustling, but it has a lively mix of independent shops alongside chains and markets

For now maybe. But left unchecked retailing will eat itself.

[Rhiannon]

One of M&S's problems is that it does not know who its customer is. It appears to believe that there is a solid "middle class" prepared to pay more for fairly standard goods than the hoi polloi, and that the aspirational hoi polloi will eventually become customers. (It shares this view with the groceries arm of the John Lewis Partnership - Waitrose - which is also reducing its overall size in the retail marketplace.)

One thing that M&S must get its corporate mind around is that its main competitor is not Harvey Nicholls but Primark.

M&S used to be my go to place for classic basics - good shirts, knitwear etc. The quality declined as did the level of design. Mumsnet has regular ‘lets laugh at the M&S clothes’ threads, not because they are cheap (we all love a bit of Primark) but because the clothes are just so hideous. They don’t appeal to any age group as far as I can tell.

When my kids were small I did a big order of clothes for them from M&S. One item wasn’t in stock so they held the entire order for it to arrive- estimate 21 days. Next dispatch everything as soon as it is in stock even if it takes several deliveries and for one flat rate. I cancelled the whole of the M&S order as I really needed the stuff. Never used them since.

[Rhiannon]

For now maybe. But left unchecked retailing will eat itself.

How do you suggest checking it?

[Aruntraveller]

How do you suggest checking it?

Seriously I have no idea other than making Amazon and others pay the correct tax rates on items they sell, but that is fiendishly difficult to rectify from the reading I have done on the matter, although I confess I do not understand this area at all well. Ensuring there is an incentive for shopping locally, rather than ordering from the usual suspects. That incentive for many lower paid workers has got to be based on price which means you have to interfere with the "free market" and you know how well that plays in the utopia that is Capitalist Brexit Britain.

(It is perhaps worth knowing that I am feeling incredibly grumpy today for reasons I know not what of - so if I sound unreasonable it's probably because I am!)

[Rhiannon]

Seriously I have no idea other than making Amazon and others pay the correct tax rates on items they sell, but that is fiendishly difficult to rectify from the reading I have done on the matter, although I confess I do not understand this area at all well. Ensuring there is an incentive for shopping locally, rather than ordering from the usual suspects. That incentive for many lower paid workers has got to be based on price which means you have to interfere with the "free market" and you know how well that plays in the utopia that is Capitalist Brexit Britain.

(It is perhaps worth knowing that I am feeling incredibly grumpy today for reasons I know not what of - so if I sound unreasonable it's probably because I am!)

I use Amazon a lot, mostly because I need products that are free from chemicals that I just can’t but on the High St or in supermarkets. But I agree about the taxes.

Aside from that though I like to shop for fun. If I don’t buy basics at the supermarket I buy them in bulk online, so that when I shop it’s for interesting things. It’s why I actively love charity shops and markets- you never know what you will find. My local independent bookshops both are successful because they hold regular author events, lectures and host book clubs with coffee. There are butchers still, a greengrocer on the market, a deli, a couple of interior designers, haberdashers, art supplies...

Nothing wrong with being grumpy. 

[Robbie]

I haven't been in M&S for ages and intend to this coming weekend, just to see*.
Hated it when I was a kid (who didn't?), as I got older I loved it,used to shop there in town but the more suburban branches didn't have same range. Also shopped on line & think I did as recently as last Christmas.

When I started working locally I would pop in on a Friday after work for food which was good, lots of offers. Haven't done that recently.Indeed is a long time since I've been there except for handy/garage shops - which are invariably good. I often popped into one & got exactly what I needed.

So I feel sad if M&S are closing shops but it is inevitable, so many are closing & M&S will be no exception.

*Maybe not as going away for a week but if I see an M&S where I'm going (Filey), will pop in, otherwise go when returned from hol.
Just googled & nearest M&S is in Scarborough, don't know yet if I will go there but willkeep you informed on return.

[Harrowby Hall]

In Worcestershire we have recently seen the closure of the M&S store in Redditch. It was in the Kingfisher Centre next door to BHS. The BHS site has become The Range.

In Evesham there is a large out-of-town Tesco with B&M, Next, Boots, Argos and M&S Food in very close proximity. On the other side of town is Morrisons, Currys, The Range, Halfords and B&Q all close together. In both areas are large, free car parks. In the town centre is a three-quarters finished Waitrose store. Aldi and Lidl both have expansion plans (with Aldi moving to a site near Morrisons).

There a rumours about that Waitrose will not open leaving the district council (who apparently financed it) with a large empty retail building designed specifically for Waitrose. The town centre is mix of charity shops and coffee bars. Two specialty shops - a greengrocer and an old-fashioned sweet shop have closed within the last month.

One of the town's real glories, the Regal - easily the best cinema anywhere in the Midlands, perhaps the country - is not in the town centre.

Evesham is probably little different from other market towns with a town centre that will soon require a brand new concept of what a town centre should be if it is to survive.


Something I had overlooked.

Outside Evesham there is The Valley (on a hilltop!) which appears to be a variation of the Bicester Village concept. Accessible from the bypass with free parking ...

[Rhiannon]

If anything is going to kill department stores it’ll be the outlet villages. Genuinely high-end goods with massive reductions that aren’t much more expensive than their high st equivalents. I know a lot of people who always head for an outlet when it comes to making big purchases. I don’t bother much these days, but I still have a Ghost suit that I bought for £70 and a pair of £250 evening shoes that cost me £30. Stuff like that lasts.

[Walter]

I use Amazon a lot, mostly because I need products that are free from chemicals that I just can’t but on the High St or in supermarkets. But I agree about the taxes.

Aside from that though I like to shop for fun. If I don’t buy basics at the supermarket I buy them in bulk online, so that when I shop it’s for interesting things. It’s why I actively love charity shops and markets- you never know what you will find. My local independent bookshops both are successful because they hold regular author events, lectures and host book clubs with coffee. There are butchers still, a greengrocer on the market, a deli, a couple of interior designers, haberdashers, art supplies...

Nothing wrong with being grumpy. 

Rhi , i think youll find 'shopping for fun ' is an oxymoron 

[Robbie]

Good to see you Walter, hope you enjoyed your holiday.

Shopping for fun makes me think of having people for the weekend, going antiquing or to a farmer's market.

[Walter]

Good to see you Walter, hope you enjoyed your holiday.

Shopping for fun makes me think of having people for the weekend, going antiquing or to a farmer's market.

That's very kind of you Robbie but I haven't been on holiday, unless you're referring to my break from the board.

and shopping for me is like, well, id rather visit the dentist . At least I get a lollypop if I've been a good boy   

[Robbie]

Yes, me too up to a point. I shop when I have to. However, do enjoy occasional shopping with guests as I said in last post. I had rellies down from Yorkshire over Easter & they enjoyed the antique market at Greenwich, parking can be a pain but my daughter (currently in USA) lives Greenwich &Blackheath border so we parked there, no-one minded walking a bit, thank goodness.

Thought you were away in Australia visiting daughter, sorry if I got it wrong, good to see you back (there was someone who was reminiscent of you who joinedR&E in your absence)

[Walter]

Yes, me too up to a point. I shop when I have to. However, do enjoy occasional shopping with guests as I said in last post. I had rellies down from Yorkshire over Easter & they enjoyed the antique market at Greenwich, parking can be a pain but my daughter (currently in USA) lives Greenwich &Blackheath border so we parked there, no-one minded walking a bit, thank goodness.

Thought you were away in Australia visiting daughter, sorry if I got it wrong, good to see you back (there was someone who was reminiscent of you who joinedR&E in your absence)

actually you are right about Australia , however plans were changed on the advice of the chap who put in a replacement hip for me , so that trip has been delayed for a while .