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| Marks and Spencer launches 30-minute home delivery service | Marks and Spencer launches 30-minute home delivery service |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Marks & Spencer has launched its first home delivery service, four months ahead of its partnership with Ocado. | Marks & Spencer has launched its first home delivery service, four months ahead of its partnership with Ocado. |
| Customers can now order from a range of about 130 M&S food and household items through Deliveroo. | Customers can now order from a range of about 130 M&S food and household items through Deliveroo. |
| M&S has kept its Simply Food stores and food halls open during the coronavirus pandemic, but the delivery service will make its products available to those confined to their homes. | M&S has kept its Simply Food stores and food halls open during the coronavirus pandemic, but the delivery service will make its products available to those confined to their homes. |
| It says deliveries will take 30 minutes and there is a £4.99 charge. | It says deliveries will take 30 minutes and there is a £4.99 charge. |
| The service is available from 142 M&S outlets across the country. | The service is available from 142 M&S outlets across the country. |
| The launch comes after rival Sainsbury's introduced a one-hour delivery service called Chop Chop, which allows customers to order a top-up shop of up to 20 items. It too charges a £4.99 delivery fee. | |
| M&S is one of the few big food retailers without its own internet-based delivery service. This has hampered the chain as it struggles with the decline of bricks-and-mortar High Street stores and the move to online shopping. | M&S is one of the few big food retailers without its own internet-based delivery service. This has hampered the chain as it struggles with the decline of bricks-and-mortar High Street stores and the move to online shopping. |
| The coronavirus outbreak has accelerated this trend. Online sales now account for 10.2% of the grocery market, up from 7.4% before the pandemic, according to latest data from Kantar. | The coronavirus outbreak has accelerated this trend. Online sales now account for 10.2% of the grocery market, up from 7.4% before the pandemic, according to latest data from Kantar. |
| Tactical move | Tactical move |
| Retail analyst Richard Hyman said M&S's arrangement with Deliveroo was a "pragmatic move" that felt more tactical than strategic. | Retail analyst Richard Hyman said M&S's arrangement with Deliveroo was a "pragmatic move" that felt more tactical than strategic. |
| "It sells niche products which have often been used as a top-up to the main food shop for treats," he told the BBC. | "It sells niche products which have often been used as a top-up to the main food shop for treats," he told the BBC. |
| "In this constrained period, if people are going to have to queue to get into the shop, they may well jettison their top-up." | "In this constrained period, if people are going to have to queue to get into the shop, they may well jettison their top-up." |
| Mr Hyman said bigger M&S stores were likely to be "right at the heart of the country's population centres, where everything else is shut, and that will have impacted footfall". | Mr Hyman said bigger M&S stores were likely to be "right at the heart of the country's population centres, where everything else is shut, and that will have impacted footfall". |
| As a result, the Deliveroo deal was designed to make sure that customers could still get M&S products as quickly and easily as possible, he added. | As a result, the Deliveroo deal was designed to make sure that customers could still get M&S products as quickly and easily as possible, he added. |
| M&S announced last year that it would go into partnership with Ocado from September this year, replacing the online grocer's existing deal with Waitrose. | M&S announced last year that it would go into partnership with Ocado from September this year, replacing the online grocer's existing deal with Waitrose. |
| Under the deal, M&S is buying a 50% share of Ocado's retail business for £750m. | Under the deal, M&S is buying a 50% share of Ocado's retail business for £750m. |
| Ocado will also continue to supply its own-label products and big-name branded goods. | Ocado will also continue to supply its own-label products and big-name branded goods. |