Marks & Spencer is mounting a high-profile marketing campaign to reinforce its value credentials among frugal shoppers keeping a tight eye on spending during the recession.
The retailer’s six-week Dress for Less campaign has been launched in stores and online across the crucial categories of womenswear, menswear, lingerie and childrenswear. It will be supported from today by a media campaign featuring M&S celebrity face Myleene Klass.
Dress for Less is centred around items that can be worn in a variety of contexts and accessorised, thereby providing enhanced value. The lines are not being discounted, but there will be associated ad hoc promotions such as three-for-two on Per Una lingerie.
A spokeswoman said: “The ads showcase five key looks from five key items. They are mix and match investment pieces for the season, which will help our customers’ wardrobes work harder for them without breaking the bank.
“We know customers are finding it tough and are buying smarter, which is why we are promoting these pieces which are flexible and great value ‘per wear’.”
The campaign is understood to reflect wider changes within M&S’s clothing offer.
Credit Suisse analyst Tony Shiret, who met M&S finance chief Ian Dyson last week, said: “They are expecting to have to remix product to allow them to pass cost increases through. The current plan is to improve the performance of the ‘better’ part of the range, where they have had the worst problems in the just gone autumn/winter season. In particular, Per Una is expected to improve after a very weak collection this autumn/winter.”
Separately, M&S is reported to have demanded improved terms from suppliers as it seeks to mitigate the impact of sterling’s weakness. An M&S spokeswoman denied a wide-ranging attempting to overturn contracts, however.
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