Percy Pig stans and Colin the Caterpillar devotees, time to get excited. The British icons could be coming to a town near you very soon, as M&S is opening over a dozen new stores across the country.
Way back at the start of 2023, Marks and Sparks announced that it would be investing £480 million into a string of ‘bigger and better’ shops over 2023 and 2024. Last November saw a flurry of new openings, its six new stores and three renewed outlets making the month M&S’s biggest-ever for new shops.
And M&S has now revealed plans for 13 new stores over the next year, four of which are ‘full-line’ shops. The other nine are food halls. You can find out more about the London openings here.
Could your local area be getting a brand-new M&S? Here’s everything we know so far.
Where is M&S opening new stores?
So far, just six of M&S’s new stores have been confirmed. Here are all those, as well as their opening dates.
- The Galleries, Washington – opened Thursday May 30 (full line)
- Ladymead Retail Park Guildford, – June 12 (food hall)
- Sidcup, London - June 19 (food hall)
- Friern Barnet, London - August 2024 (food hall)
- Gallagher Retail Park, Dundee – summer 2024 (full line)
- Largs, North Ayrshire – early 2025 (food hall)
Where has M&S already opened stores?
So far in 2023 and 2024, the retailer has brought new or renewed stores and food halls to:
- Purley Way,
- Croydon,
- White Rose Centre, Leeds,
- Liverpool ONE,
- Stockport
- Clacton
- Birmingham Bullring, November 7
- Lakeside Shopping Centre, Thurrock,
- Trafford Centre, Manchester
- Uckfield
- Earlsfield
- Barnsley
M&S has also spruced up and reopened stores in Camberley, Handforth and Newcastle.
What can we expect from the new Marks and Spencer’s stores?
Each store is set to be built ‘with local families in mind’. This means that aisles will be wider, allowing for easier browsing. There will be new market-style food halls, free parking for shoppers and sustainable elements including ‘fill your own’ stations.
Which stores are closing?
Despite the swathes of new stores, Sparks is actually losing a bunch too. These stores have been slated for closure
- Broadway Shopping Centre, Bradford (already closed)
- Green Street, Neath (already closed)
- St Nicholas Street, Aberdeen – 2025
- St Mary Street, Weymouth – exact date to be confirmed
- High Street West, Sunderland – exact date to be confirmed
- Maidens Walk, Hexham – exact date to be confirmed
- Exchange, Ilford, East London – exact date to be confirmed
- King William Street, Blackburn – exact date to be confirmed
- Walworth Road, Walworth, South London – exact date to be confirmed
What has M&S said?
Stuart Machin, the chief executive of M&S, said: ‘The outperformance of our recently relocated and renewed stores gives us the confidence to go faster in our plan. Our investment in stores not only delivers a better experience for customers and colleagues, it boosts local communities with new job creation and will help us deliver a more sustainable estate in every sense.’
Sacha Berendji, operations director added: 'To deliver our biggest ever store opening month which supports thousands of jobs is an outstanding effort from the team and shows just how serious we are about accelerating our rotation plans so we are in the right locations for our customers.'
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