M&S announce £50m investment in stores across the North West - creating 300 jobs

At its half-year results, M&S announced that its store rotation programme is picking up pace as new and renewed stores are trading well.

The investment, which is spread across the next three financial years, will see three stores across the North West renewed to the latest format and five brand new stores in new locations so customers can do their weekly food shop with M&S.

Lancashire

In Lancashire, M&S plans to open a new Food Hall in Lancashire in Thornton-Cleveleys, pending planning permission. The investment will triple the size of the Thornton-Cleveleys store, replacing the existing store with a 16,000 sq. foot Food Hall and dedicated Flower and Wine Shops.

In East Lancashire, M&S has submitted for planning permission to move its Blackburn store to Frontier Park retail hub, to bring customers a wider range of Food products.

Merseyside area

A new full-line store in New Mersey Retail Park in Speke, south Liverpool, will open, pending planning approval, and create more than 100 new local jobs. The store will replace the existing Food Hall and bring a bigger range of M&S products than before from Food to Clothing, Home and Beauty. It hopes to build on the success of the full-line city centre store in Liverpool One, which opened in 2023 and has since seen a 25 per cent increase in food sales.

In Formby, M&S plans to open the doors to a brand-new Food Hall at The Point development, replacing the existing smaller Food Hall. The new store will support 60 local jobs.

Greater Manchester

In Greater Manchester, the existing stores in the region will grow, with a major extension planned for the full-line store in Middlebrook Retail Park in Bolton, and a fresh redesign for the Food Hall in Sale which was recently completed.

An estimated 108 jobs will be created for the extension in Bolton as the store expands into a vacant unit in Middlebrook Retail Park. A £2.1million investment in Sale has delivered a brand-defining Food Hall, now open with a larger bakery with a coffee-to-go counter and a brand-new Food to Order service.

Cheshire

In Cheshire, the full-line store in Gemini Retail Park in Warrington has been redesigned. The renewed store now features a refreshed Clothing and Home area and a larger Beauty department stocking the full range of M&S own brand products and third-party brands, a larger Food Hall offering the full Food range with a fresh produce section twice the size of the previous store, and a much larger in-store bakery offering takeaway coffee.

Just a few miles down the road from the new Gemini store, M&S plans to open a brand-new Outlet store in Warrington, along with a Click and Collect service. The new outlet is expected to open towards the end of summer this year.

“Reshape for growth”

Will Smith, property director at M&S, said: "As we reshape for growth, we want to open new stores we can be proud of and that deliver the best possible shopping experience for customers. Our pipeline of stores for 2025 demonstrates our continued investment in market-leading stores as we deliver our transformation priorities. We have the opportunity in the North west of England to continue investing in market-leading stores, as part of our renewal and rotation strategy, offering great quality products with that touch of M&S magic and the trusted value our customers expect and deserve.

"M&S already has many local supplier partnerships such as Park Cakes in Oldham who make the customer-favourite Colin the Caterpillar cakes, and these new stores will help showcase their products and support jobs throughout the supply chain.”

All new store plans are subject to planning permission.