M&S to launch online food delivery service

Marks & Spencer is gearing up to launch an online food delivery service later this year, as the retailer looks to capitalise on the continued success of its food halls.

The new service, which it expects to pilot in the autumn, will allow customers to order food items online and have them delivered directly to their homes.

The news follows an announcement earlier this month that M&S plans to close six stores but open 34 food shops over the next six months. This is part of the firm’s ongoing strategy to progress away from clothing and put a greater focus on groceries. The latest move also follows the recent departure of the firm’s digital director Marcus East, with M&S currently in the process of recruiting a replacement.

Steve Rowe, chief executive of M&S, said: “We continue to review food online carefully. It has not cost us anything over the last five years by not being online with food. Our customers haven’t moved yet, but they will and we need to ensure that we are ready with the right response.

“There are unanswered questions over what this means for M&S, and we have a team looking at this now with a view to undertaking a soft trial in the autumn.

“The economics of food online are not straight forward and it is not something that we are going to rush into until we have substantial customer insight and a better understanding of what is right for M&S and right for our customers.”

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