Marks & Spencer has announced the closure of 11 cafes in its smaller food shops as part of its ongoing revamp of store locations. The company stated that shutting down the cafes is a strategic move to make room for more popular products while ensuring that no jobs will be lost, and affected staff will be reassigned within the stores. This decision will impact less than 4% of the total 316 food shops operated by the retail giant.
According to an M&S spokesperson, the initiative is aimed at modernizing the food business and expanding the availability of M&S Food to a wider audience. As part of this transformation, the company will be introducing new coffee shops that offer a variety of food options and high-quality fairtrade coffee, such as at the new Bristol Cabot Circus store. Additionally, in certain smaller food stores where customers demand a broader range of M&S Food products, the cafe spaces in 11 locations out of over 300 cafes, coffee shops, and coffee-to-go spots will be repurposed.
This move is part of a broader £300 million investment and store rotation program that will see a significant increase in the number of M&S food halls. The company has been converting several full-line stores into food-focused outlets, while also upgrading existing food-only stores to enhance operations and better cater to customers.
M&S aims to expand to approximately 420 food stores by the end of 2028 as part of its recovery strategy following a significant cyberattack earlier this year. The breach, which occurred in April and resulted in a temporary halt to online orders for six weeks, is estimated to cost the company around £300 million. The incident affected millions of shoppers, prompting the retailer to intensify its security measures.
The cyberattack not only impacted Marks & Spencer but also targeted other retailers, including Co-op, which managed to mitigate the attack by shutting down its IT systems. The incident caused disruptions in supply chains, leading to empty shelves in some stores. Harrods, a high-end department store, also faced a similar attack during this period.
Graeme Stewart, head of public sector at security firm Check Point, highlighted a surge in ransomware attacks on UK retailers in recent months, with the sector now ranking as the fifth most targeted industry. The top four sectors facing such attacks predominantly belong to the public sector, including higher education, the NHS, local government, and the Ministry of Defence.
