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back to article These are not just job cuts, these are M&S job cuts

Marks & Spencer is to ship 400 IT and logistics roles out of London, part of a structural shake-up which will also see the retailer axe 525 roles. M&S said that it will be entering into consultation with its employees with regards to proposals to "make significant changes to its UK Head Office structure". The aspirational- …

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  1. djstardust

    Horrible company

    We used to do tailoring work for M&S about 15 years ago. They had many skilled, long serving employees who really took a pride in their work. Everything was carried out to procedures and the whole place was very well ran indeed.

    Then one day they decided to scare off their long termers (probably to avoid pension costs) and employ any Tom, Dick or Harry on minimum wage most of whom incidentally can't speak English. Our local store is totally understaffed and the queues at the tills especially at weekends are horrendous.

    Seems many great UK businesses (BA for example) have gone down this route and have turned toxic.

    M&S deserve all they get. Profits before punters will catch up with them, just look what happened to Tesco. Improving the customer experience my arse .... protecting the shareholders more like.

    27 2 Reply
    1. Alan Brown Silver badge
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      Re: Horrible company

      "Then one day they decided to scare off their long termers"

      And more recently they've tightened the screws on those who remain, using the living wage legislation as a convenient excuse.

      They're just another retail chain. Any pretense of glory is just wrapping a faded past around a brand which has long been as bad as all the rest.

      14 1 Reply
    2. Baldy50
      Reply Icon

      Re: Horrible company

      Let's hope it's as toxic for them when they stopped making knickers and whatever in the UK!

      Two companies local to me went down and the machinery went abroad, I was working for a machinery sales/shipping company at the time.

      It was as daft as a few pennies per item manufactured they saved from using a foreign company as opposed to keeping UK jobs.

      Just seems to be their business model, they don't mind us buying their shit they just don't seem to like employing us!

      http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/supermarket-sandwich-company-snubbed-brits-4635564

      10 0 Reply
      1. MyffyW Silver badge
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        Mixed company

        Used to rate them. They were the Isambard Kingdom Brunel of the underwired bra, keeping one's bosom safe from the envy of less happier hands.

        Not quite so smitten after a recent visit when the checkout assistant could scarcely bring herself to speak.

        1 0 Reply
      2. h4rm0ny
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        Re: Horrible company

        Someone once described M&S as the modern version of the potlach in that it's just a visible way of throwing away your money. Their quality is not very good for food, imo. Waitrose are the ones that actually do good quality food and ingredients in fancy boxes. M&S just do mediocre quality food and ingredients in fancy boxes.

        0 0 Reply
  2. JimmyPage Silver badge
    FAIL

    Suggest the next in sequence ...

    Woolies, Comet, BHS, M&S ?

    it's only investor inertia which has kept a lot of old-school retailers alive when faced with the competition of the internet.

    My wife and |I gave up years ago with "shopping". Even if we did find something we liked (which is more and more unlikely when ever store is selling the same tat as every other store) there's the added challenge of finding it in the right size, only to be told to "look on our website" ...

    Last thing we bought from M&S was a lightweight coat. After 3 weeks a button cracked. I went to return it, and to my amazement the assistant made a big show of digging out the spare buttons, and wafting them under my nose. They then made a big point that buttons were not covered by the warranty, and that they would only replace the item because it was "less than a month".

    Unusually for me, the sharp tongue stayed silent, but only because I knew I would never buy anything from M&S again. Which is a shame, as they were one of the few shops my Mum (who could sew and make clothes) trusted.

    We are entering an age where you can *only* buy the same shit, no matter which retailer you choose. Unless you use the internet.

    20 1 Reply
    1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge
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      Re: Suggest the next in sequence ...

      'They then made a big point that buttons were not covered by the warranty, and that they would only replace the item because it was "less than a month".'

      You should have asked for that in writing.

      7 0 Reply
      1. JimmyPage Silver badge
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        Re:You should have asked for that in writing.

        Why ?

        Once I had decided I had no more use for M&S, why waste another second of my precious time ?

        This is the problem a lot of soon-to-be-out-of-business retailers have completely missed or forgotten. Which is that when an alternative is available, pissed off customers will just go there, rather than engage with you. It's one reason why any customer services department worth its salt will be concerned if complaints drop below a certain level, as it would suggest customers are walking, rather than complaining.

        10 1 Reply
        1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge
          Reply Icon

          Re: Re:You should have asked for that in writing.

          "Why ?"

          To drop them in it with Trading Standards. Sale of Goods Act & all that.

          1 0 Reply
  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "The aspirational-branded retailer"

    M & S - Aspirational? Really?

    0 0 Reply
  4. allthecoolshortnamesweretaken

    "Out of London..."

    ... and into where exactly?

    4 0 Reply
    1. Tom 7
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      Re: "Out of London..."

      Still inside the M25, just, Stockley park in Hillingdon. So still expensive and a 'loose will to live' commute.

      3 0 Reply
      1. Roland6 Silver badge
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        Re: "Out of London..."

        Still inside the M25

        A Londoner's concept of "Out of London"...

        8 0 Reply
      2. Anonymous Coward
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        Anonymous Coward

        Re: "Out of London..."

        A few of my old colleagues left a well-known supermarket last year to work at M&S after the former decided to move most IT jobs to Coventry, so I don't think they will be too impressed by this, especially because they live the opposite side to Hillingdon.

        0 0 Reply
      3. Anonymous Coward
        Reply Icon
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: "Out of London..."

        And I thought it was just:

        "In London..." The North Circular oppressive average speed 40mph Camera technology, that was by design, a 'loose will to live' commute.

        9 points and counting for all minor stuff, doesn't help.

        Maybe 'zero-T' Theresa May should drive herself to central London / East Finchley, from Stockley Park a few times to get the feel, of her schemes.

        1 0 Reply
  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    How far "out of London"?

    For example, Wales or India? Both are "out of London".

    3 0 Reply
  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    £10 meal deals.

    An upshot of this? They'll be selling a lot more of those bland, £10 meal deals to their ex-workers.

    Forget the M&S celeb based lifestyle website, just show me a good clear image of the product, show me the checkout in the least number of clicks possible and get it to me next day, with an easy return process if its wrong.

    1 0 Reply
  7. ecofeco Silver badge

    Just add them to the list

    Just add them to the list of companies who really don't give a flying monkey fart about the country's IT industry yet will be standing with all the others complaining about "lack of talent."

    4 0 Reply
    1. Adam 52 Silver badge
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      Re: Just add them to the list

      Seriously? They're moving 19 miles by road to an office that already has much of their IT already and is massively easier to get to. It's not exactly the end of IT in the UK.

      1 0 Reply
  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    There is a Satan!

    Maybe they need all the money saved to give to David Beckham to promote some more crap with his 'Brand' on it?

    2 0 Reply

  9. This post has been deleted by its author

  10. Medixstiff

    Unless the higher up's also tighten their belts - they tend to earn 20 times more than the average employee anyway and can certainly afford it - then you know they really don't care what happens to the business or how many of the actual "workers" that make the place what it is are fired, they will still get their inflated pay and bonuses if it goes tits up.

    3 0 Reply

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