A British retailer selling food, clothing and home products, started in Leeds in 1884, with stores and support centres across the UK.
Marks and Spencer, known as M&S, is a British retailer of food, clothing and home products. It runs UK full-line stores and food stores and sells online. In 2001 it launched Simply Food, a convenience format whose first shops opened in Twickenham and Surbiton, according to Wikipedia. It also owns half of Ocado Retail, which Wikipedia says it bought in 2019, and the St Michael name introduced by Simon Marks in 1928 in honour of his father has returned as an emblem.
M&S says it started life in 1884, when immigrant Michael Marks secured a stall at Kirkgate Market in Leeds, selling simple homewares under the slogan "Don't ask the price, it's a 'Penny". He teamed up with Tom Spencer, a cashier at wholesalers Dewhirst, and the partnership created the name Marks & Spencer and its first Penny Bazaar stores. The M&S Archive, on the University of Leeds campus, holds over 72,000 historical items.
We did not find a formal mission statement. Its people pages say "People are at the heart of everything we do at M&S", and say that when colleagues feel supported, included and able to grow they bring their best selves to work. Its People Principles aim to do the right thing and set minimum standards for recruitment, reward, employee relations and engagement. Its Plan A 2030 commitments include helping one million people through community and employability programmes and donating 20 million pounds to charity, and the company says it has helped over 28,000 people through training and work experience since 2004.
The company says it employs over 65,000 colleagues across stores, support centres, logistics and international teams (another page says about 70,000, and Wikipedia says 63,000 for 2026). Wikipedia says the head office is at Waterside House in Paddington, London, and lists other sites at Stockley Park, Salford Quays and Chester. Its 2024 results aimed for 180 full-line and 420 food stores in the UK, so check for current numbers.
Its pages also say it wants a culture that promotes diversity, inclusivity, personal development and respect, with commitments such as 20 percent ethnic minority representation among senior managers and at least 40 percent female Board representation. Roles therefore include shop floor and food hall work, support centre jobs in London, Salford and elsewhere, and logistics. These are the company's own claims, and the pages describe jobs only in general terms, so check the M&S careers site for current roles.
Website: corporate.marksandspencer.com
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