Marks and Spencer Group plc (commonly abbreviated as M&S or colloquially Marks and Sparks) is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, home products and food products, mostly of its own label. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index, having previously been in the FTSE 100 Index from its creation until 2019.

M&S was founded in 1884 by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer in Leeds. M&S currently has 959 stores across the U.K. including 615 that only sell food products, and through its television advertising, asserts the exclusive nature and luxury of its food and beverages; it also offers an online food delivery service.

In 1998, the company became the first British retailer to make a pre-tax profit of over £1 billion, although subsequently it went into a sudden slump, which took the company and its stakeholders by surprise. In November 2009, it was announced that Marc Bolland, formerly of Morrisons, would take over as chief executive from executive chairman Sir Stuart Rose in early 2010; Rose remained executive chairman until July 2010 and then chairman until January 2011, when he was replaced by Robert Swannell. In recent years, its clothing sales have fallen whilst food sales have increased after axing the St. Michael brand name for their own brand. The company also began to sell branded goods like Kellogg’s Corn Flakes in November 2008.

On 22 May 2018, it was confirmed that over 100 stores will have closed by 2022 in a “radical” plan. Whether more stores will close is yet to be confirmed.

On 18 August 2020, M&S released a statement they were to cut 7,000 jobs over next three months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Type:                     Public limited company

Traded as:           LSE: MKS; FTSE 250 Component

Industry:              Retail

Founded:            1884; 136 years ago; Leeds, United Kingdom

Founder:             Michael Marks; Thomas Spencer

Headquarters:   London, England, UK

Brands:

• Per Una
• Autograph
• Limited
• Rosie
• Blue Harbour
• M&S Collection
• M&S Energy

Subsidiaries:       M&S Bank (owned by HSBC since 2004)

Website:              www.marksandspencer.com