Marks & Spencer is eyeing up a deal for a new giant warehouse in the East Midlands to accommodate an expected leap in its online sales.
Property sources have suggested to The Telegraph that M&S has been looking at 1 million sq ft of space in the Northamptonshire area, but a decision has not yet been reached.
M&S has around 9.4 million regular online shoppers and wants half its fashion and homewares sales to be bought from its website. The majority of its sales still take place in store.
The retailer has started making alterations to its website, such as making pages load more quickly and decreasing the number of links to improve the customer experience.
M&S’ latest capital markets day showed growth towards refining its supply chain, with the business streamlining operations from 16 warehouses and distribution centres in 2018 to 10 in 2023, saving £45m.
However, bosses told investors last year that there was still “more to do”.
M&S has been upgrading its warehouses with more automated services over the past few years, including its Bradford centre.
A spokesman for the retailer told The Telegraph: “Modernising our supply chain is a key pillar of our strategy to reshape M&S for growth, so we always keep an eye on what’s in the market, but this is nothing more than that.”
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