Jewish immigrant Michael Marks arrived in England from Belarus (then Russian Poland) and began working as a pedlar, after he received a loan from Isaac Dewhirst to help with initial start up costs.
Jewish immigrant Michael Marks arrived in England from Belarus (then Russian Poland) and began working as a pedlar, after he received a loan from Isaac Dewhirst to help with initial start up costs.
Michael opened his first Penny Bazaar stall at Kirkgate Market in Leeds, and added the slogan ‘Don’t ask the price, it’s a penny’ once it became clear that the products priced at a penny were his bestsellers.
Michael decided to look for a partner to help manage his growing business. He initially approached Isaac Dewhirst who recommended Tom Spencer – Isaac’s senior cashier. Tom agreed, and on 28th September 1894 Marks & Spencer was born.
Tom matched Michael’s own investment of £300 and together they continued to expand the business with stalls and stores, naming them Penny Bazaars, keeping the penny price slogan and adding the words ‘Admission Free’. This was a successful marketing strategy, encouraging customers to browse without any obligation to buy.
By 1900 Marks & Spencer had expanded to include 12 Penny Bazaar stores and 24 market stalls.
We built a warehouse at Derby Street, Manchester. It was the first property built to our specifications and became the Company’s first registered address and headquarters.
Marks & Spencer Ltd was registered as a firm with a capital of 30,000 £1 shares. These were split equally between the two founders.
Marks & Spencer bought the London Penny Bazaar Company.
Following the deaths of Tom Spencer in 1905 and Michael Marks in 1907 a lengthy legal battle between Simon Marks and William Chapman began, ending with Simon becoming Chairman in 1916 at the age of 28. Simon was to lead the company for 56 years.
The penny pricing continued until the First World War, when goods became expensive and hard to get. Customers really needed the buttons, needles and threads we sold to update their old clothes so we worked hard to provide the products in demand.
This period saw our products start to reflect customers’ changing lifestyles. Demand for affordable household goods grew, so we sold items like decorative tea sets alongside practical products like light bulbs, irons and batteries.
The Company’s Head Office and registered address moved from Manchester to London.
We responded to people’s needs in difficult times, selling more of life’s essentials, including our first clothing ranges. Since then, the bra has become our most iconic product, with one in three women now wearing one bought from M&S.
The St Michael trademark was introduced in 1928 as a guarantee of quality and value. Initially used only for a small range of textiles made to our specifications, the St Michael range was extended over the years to cover all goods sold in M&S.
Several other Marks & Spencer brands also existed at this point, including Marspen, a range of household goods and children’s books, and Welbeck, a food range including biscuits and other baked goods.
A food department was introduced selling produce and canned goods. This range was greatly expanded in 1934, and by the outbreak of the Second World War, we were one of the biggest food suppliers in the country.
Simon Marks commissioned Flora Solomon to set up an employee welfare service that provided pensions, subsidised employee canteens, health and dental services, hairdressing, rest rooms and camping holidays.
A Scientific Research Laboratory was established, headed by Dr Eric Kann. This was the first research lab of any British retailer to pre-test garments and research innovative new fabrics. Between 1935 and 1939 the lab carried out over 9000 tests on the wearability, washability and durability of textiles.
Café Bars were introduced, with the first one opening in 1935 in Leeds store. They provided cheap, hygienic and nutritious mass catering. By 1942 there were 82 Café Bars.
At the outbreak of the Second World War, Marks & Spencer had 234 stores. By 1945, over 100 of these had been damaged by bombs, and 16 had been completely destroyed.
The advent of clothing rationing and the Utility Clothing Scheme in wartime meant that there were strict specifications on the use of materials and trimmings for all clothing until 1952. One of our scientists helped develop the government scheme to produce a range of quality garments all bearing the ‘CC41’ logo on the label.
The Food Technology department was established to collaborate with suppliers, producers of raw materials, leading food manufacturers, farmers, Government bodies and research institutes in order to upgrade quality.
Our first food self-service trial was held at our store in Wood Green, London. Prior to this customers were served from behind counters, but they could now shop in the aisles and browse before selecting their purchases. This was a great success and became the model for all our stores.
We launched our first petite range ‘For the Shorter Woman’, following research which showed that the majority of women were shorter than the accepted average of 5’5”.
Also this year a new exchange and refund policy was introduced to guarantee instant refunds.
We took a wartime spun rayon fabric and made it into a line of dresses influenced by Parisian designers. This fabric, known as Utility Schedule 1005, was renamed Marspun. Our range of Marspun dresses grew to 340 designs in 2000 colourways!
By 1956 all goods were sold under the St Michael label, including the first St Michael chocolate, introduced this year.
We became the first retailer to introduce No Smoking rules in our stores.
The cold-chain process was invented – chickens were chilled straight after slaughter, carried in refrigerated trucks, kept in refrigerated storage, and sold from refrigerated counters giving customers the option of buying a fresh chicken for the first time.
Tights were introduced to our stores for the first time.
Simon Marks died after 56 years of service to M&S. Israel Sieff became Chairman.
By 1966 sales of clothes made from synthetic fabrics overtook sales of natural fibres for the first time. This included our range of new ‘wonder fabrics’ including the synthetic fabric Terylene. A type of polyester, it was very popular because it was so practical and hardwearing.
Israel Sieff retired from the role of Chairman; however he remained on the Board in the role of President and had an active involvement in business affairs. J Edward Sieff, Israel’s younger brother, became Chairman.
Frozen foods including lasagne and pizza were trialed for the first time with home freezers becoming cheaper and more easily available.
Marcus Sieff, son of Israel Sieff, became Chairman.
We were the first major retailer to introduce sell-by dates to food as a guarantee of freshness.
Chinese and Indian dishes were introduced; meals included Sweet and Sour Pork, Chicken Korma and Lamb Rogan Josh.
We took our first step into wholly owned stores in Europe, opening an M&S store on Boulevard Haussman in Paris
Our first fitting rooms were introduced as a trial at Plymouth store. They proved popular, and over the next few years fitting rooms were rolled out to all stores.
The first Marks & Spencer store opened in the Republic of Ireland in Mary Street, Dublin.
We launched the Chicken Kiev, which has since become a national favourite.
Marcus Sieff retired from the role of Chairman, becoming President of the Company, and Lord Derek Rayner took over as Chairman.
Our first edge of town store opened at the Metro Centre in Gateshead.
Our first range of furniture was introduced. This was supported by the launch of the Home Furnishings catalogue.
Richard Greenbury became Chief Executive, with Lord Rayner continuing as Chairman.
Our first reusable food carrier bag was introduced.
Percy Pigs were launched. By 2014 over one billion Percy Pigs had been sold.
We launched online shopping on our website for the first time.
Peter Salsbury became Chief Executive.
Luc Vandeveld became Chairman.
The Autograph range of clothing for women was introduced and we began to phase out the St Michael brand.
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per una range of clothing for women was launched.
Stuart Rose was appointed Chief Executive on the 31st May.
The M&S Chocolate Melt in the Middle pudding is launched. The idea, from our food developer Elaine Kessler, was based on chocolate fondant, a classic French dessert and took 18 months to create.
It was also part of our iconic This is not just food, this is M&S food advertising campaign. This campaign focused on the products, combining slow-motion visuals with a smooth voiceover and cult-classic soundtrack.
The Eat Well sunflower was introduced to make it easier for customers to choose healthy options.
M&S Café Revive became the first UK coffee chain to offer Fairtrade tea and coffee as standard.
We launched Plan A, our 100-point eco and ethical plan to address challenges in the key areas of climate change, waste, sustainable raw materials, fair partner and health.
We became the first retailer to launch schoolwear made from recycled plastic bottles.
We were the first retailer to announce a charge of 5p for food carrier bags. Funds raised from the sale of the bags were donated to charity, the first being Groundwork.
We launched the M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange, which is now known as Shwopping. In 2021/22 401,720 items of clothing were Shwopped with us – generating an estimated £227,000 for Oxfam.
Marc Bolland was appointed Chief Executive.
Robert Swannell became Chairman.
The M&S Archive opened at the Michael Marks Building in Leeds, bringing together over 72,000 items relating to the history of the business into one place.
We’re proud of our heritage and acknowledged the rich history of M&S with the addition of EST. 1884 to the M&S brand.
Steve Rowe was appointed Chief Executive.
The Archive by Alexa collection was a 31-piece womenswear collection curated by Alexa Chung and the M&S design team, re-imagining archive pieces using Alexa’s unique approach to style.
Archie Norman was appointed Chairman.
Plan A 2020 was launched with 100 new, revised and existing commitments, helping us to achieve our goal of becoming the world’s most sustainable retailer.
Our joint venture with Ocado launched. This included a new Food to Order offer, allowing the full availability of our food ranges to be delivered straight to your door.
We brought all our digital payment solutions under one brand banner – Scan & Shop with Sparks. This included hand-held scanners and Mobile Pay Go.
We celebrated 95 years of lingerie. Designers visited the Archive to look at embroidery in the collection which inspired a new collection of embroidered lingerie.
In menswear, designers re-worked archive garments for the Originals range including knitwear, leather jackets and footwear.
Stuart Machin was appointed Chief Executive, alongside Katie Bickerstaffe as Co-Chief Executive.
We launched a new charity partnership with Young Minds to raise awareness of the help available to young people struggling with their mental health. We kickstarted the partnership with a £1 million donation, with the aim of raising £5 million over the next three years.
