"Marks & Spencer cuts hundreds of jobs at main office"

British Marks & Spencer is planning to cut about 500 jobs in its London main office next week, according to SkyNews.

Doubts about international expansion

There is a storm brewing at Marks & Spencer: the British store chain made the news over the past few days when employees in England protested the company’s plans to cut compensations for overtime or irregular working hours. Then, on Friday, the chain announced it had decided – after consultation – to give its employees wage guarantees for several years, making them some of the “best paid British retail employees” with “one of the best extralegal packages”. However, critics point out that employees with a long service record will have to tighten the belt.

SkyNews now claims the group will cut about 500 jobs on Thursday, half of those freelance positions. Only its Paddington main office will be hit with the job cuts, which are part of CEO Steve Rowe’s recovery plan following weak sales. Marks & Spencer’s second quarter international turnover grew ever so slightly, but turnover in the British home territory slumped 1.1 % and 4.3 % on a like-for-like basis. According to analysts, the group’s profit may even drop 12 % to 600 million pounds, about 700 million euro.

Last week, The Sunday Telegraph already reported that the new CEO’s intention on turning back the company’s international expansion, which may mean it will not go through with a flagship store on the Champs-Elysées in Paris, for which the plans would be revealed in November. When he took office in the spring, Rowe already immediately stopped the launch of a concept store in Amsterdam.