Marks & Spencer sees profits tumble 62%

Retailer Marks & Spencer has this morning announced its annual pre-tax profits tumbled 62% as it prepares to close 100 stores nationwide.

This morning reporting on the year-ending 31 March, Marks & Spencer saw pre-tax profits come in at £66.8m – down from £176.4m the previous year. Earnings per share also crumbled – down from 7.2p to 1.6p this year.

The firm yesterday announced plans to shut 100 outlets by 2022. This follows 21 store closures that have already taken place across the country including Bridlington and several stores having been downsized – including the Pudsey store in Leeds.

Steve Rowe, Marks & Spencer CEO, said: “At our half year results in November I outlined the need for accelerated change at M&S. The first phase of our transformation plan, restoring the basics, is now well under way and the actions taken have increased the velocity of change running through our business. These changes come with short term costs which are reflected in today’s results.

“There are a number of structural issues to address and we are taking steps towards fixing these. The new organisation will largely be in place by July and the team is now tackling transforming our culture to make M&S a faster, lower cost, more commercial, more digital business. This is vital as we start to leverage the strength of the M&S brand and values across a family of businesses to deliver sustainable, profitable growth in three to five years.”