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| This is not fashion, this is M&S fashion | This is not fashion, this is M&S fashion |
| (6 months later) | |
| Ask people what they buy in Marks & Spencer and they'll give you two answers: pants and Percy Pigs. These are not bad USPs to have conquered; people will always need underwear and treats. But in a business of this size – a business once built upon the universal appeal and timelessness of its fashion line – they don't add up to huge profits. | Ask people what they buy in Marks & Spencer and they'll give you two answers: pants and Percy Pigs. These are not bad USPs to have conquered; people will always need underwear and treats. But in a business of this size – a business once built upon the universal appeal and timelessness of its fashion line – they don't add up to huge profits. |
| So much is obvious from today's announcement that Marks has suffered a seventh consecutive fall in profits where clothing is concerned (although food sales continue to rise, thanks Percy) – a 3.8% drop in like-for-like sales this quarter. Knickers, you might say. | So much is obvious from today's announcement that Marks has suffered a seventh consecutive fall in profits where clothing is concerned (although food sales continue to rise, thanks Percy) – a 3.8% drop in like-for-like sales this quarter. Knickers, you might say. |
| When Marks & Spencer first set up its stall in the late 19th century, the British high street looked very different. It didn't really exist, for starters, and there wasn't much on it. What M&S offered was convenience and generic good taste. It still offers much the same – but that empty high street has since filled up with brands that are doing better than it is. | When Marks & Spencer first set up its stall in the late 19th century, the British high street looked very different. It didn't really exist, for starters, and there wasn't much on it. What M&S offered was convenience and generic good taste. It still offers much the same – but that empty high street has since filled up with brands that are doing better than it is. |
| Better, and for less money. When fast fashion came along a decade ago, M&S was scuppered because it was neither speedy nor super cheap. In the wake of that movement, with shoppers now conscious of investing in pieces they'll keep, M&S clothes don't feel special enough to warrant their prices. They may be high quality (although even this has been sacrificed somewhat), but they're all over the place in terms of design. | Better, and for less money. When fast fashion came along a decade ago, M&S was scuppered because it was neither speedy nor super cheap. In the wake of that movement, with shoppers now conscious of investing in pieces they'll keep, M&S clothes don't feel special enough to warrant their prices. They may be high quality (although even this has been sacrificed somewhat), but they're all over the place in terms of design. |
| What retailers such as Swedish giant H&M have done is to divide their customers by taste and trends to better mop up the majority. Its stable, which includes the title store, minimalist haven COS, teen franchise Monki and the recently launched & Other Stories, covers all bases of prices and pieces. | What retailers such as Swedish giant H&M have done is to divide their customers by taste and trends to better mop up the majority. Its stable, which includes the title store, minimalist haven COS, teen franchise Monki and the recently launched & Other Stories, covers all bases of prices and pieces. |
| But M&S has tried to target by age – so there's a yummy mummy section, an aging squares department and a pensioners' aisle. Except pensioners nowadays count among their number the likes of Keith Richards and Mick Jagger; they're a generation unlikely to purchase the Crimplene and elasticated waists on offer. | But M&S has tried to target by age – so there's a yummy mummy section, an aging squares department and a pensioners' aisle. Except pensioners nowadays count among their number the likes of Keith Richards and Mick Jagger; they're a generation unlikely to purchase the Crimplene and elasticated waists on offer. |
| It's difficult – impossible, perhaps – for fashion retailers to survive now without a firm sense of who their customer is. The danger of catering to too many tastes is that you end up satisfying none, and that's what has happened at M&S. This is not just fashion, this is fashion that tries to appeal to grannies and girls alike; to yuppies and yokels, hipsters and hip-replacements. But you alienate one in pursuit of the other. | It's difficult – impossible, perhaps – for fashion retailers to survive now without a firm sense of who their customer is. The danger of catering to too many tastes is that you end up satisfying none, and that's what has happened at M&S. This is not just fashion, this is fashion that tries to appeal to grannies and girls alike; to yuppies and yokels, hipsters and hip-replacements. But you alienate one in pursuit of the other. |
| It's what happened at Jaeger and Aquascutum, which ran into trouble last year. The two labels, as indomitable as the matriarchs who used to wear them, lost their core customers in their scramble to join up at London Fashion Week and court the cool crowd. | It's what happened at Jaeger and Aquascutum, which ran into trouble last year. The two labels, as indomitable as the matriarchs who used to wear them, lost their core customers in their scramble to join up at London Fashion Week and court the cool crowd. |
| M&S has managed a few coups of late – its terribly au courant blue metallic pencil skirt has been splashed across the style press this season, and ads campaigns featuring model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley (who has also been the face of Burberry) have boosted the brand's credentials. | M&S has managed a few coups of late – its terribly au courant blue metallic pencil skirt has been splashed across the style press this season, and ads campaigns featuring model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley (who has also been the face of Burberry) have boosted the brand's credentials. |
| But what's sad is that this should be a golden time for M&S, as people rediscover the value of quality, British-made clothing that you can rely on not to fall apart after one wash. That's what it has always been good at but, unfortunately, people are buying those things elsewhere. | But what's sad is that this should be a golden time for M&S, as people rediscover the value of quality, British-made clothing that you can rely on not to fall apart after one wash. That's what it has always been good at but, unfortunately, people are buying those things elsewhere. |
| What M&S should be offering is the sort of simple, inoffensive staples that people need regardless of age or affluence. It will never win a trends race with the rest of the high street, so just give us a nice crewneck jumper and a decent white shirt to go with our pants and our Percys. Ultimately, these are the sorts of clothes that most of us get excited about anyway. | What M&S should be offering is the sort of simple, inoffensive staples that people need regardless of age or affluence. It will never win a trends race with the rest of the high street, so just give us a nice crewneck jumper and a decent white shirt to go with our pants and our Percys. Ultimately, these are the sorts of clothes that most of us get excited about anyway. |
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