Marks and Spencer confirms it is closing 60 stores in the UK

Business reporter(wp/es):

Marks and Spencer will close 60 of its clothing and home stores over the next five years.

The iconic British retail chain is set to open more food stores instead, chief executive Steve Rowe has said.

He said the brand’s total UK estate would increase.

Thirty clothing and home stores will shut down and 45 will be turned into food stores.

The company also plans to open 200 more Simply Food stores in the UK by 2019.

But a spokesman for M&S said it will not yet reveal which stores would shut.

The news comes as part of turnaround plans for the retailer, which reported an 88 per cent fall in pre-tax profit to £25.1 million in the six months to the end of September as sales of food and clothing declined.

The company also announced plans to leave ten loss-making international markets, closing 53 stores abroad.

M&S has over 300 full-range stores and almost 600 Simply Food stores in the UK.

CEO Steve Rowe said: "These are tough decisions, but vital to building a future M&S that is simpler, more relevant, multi-channel and focused on delivering sustainable returns."