Suppliers reassured as M&S food goes exotic
The retailer has opened new-look stores in High Street Kensington, London and Stratford, featuring delis and bakeries and listing 100 imported products it says can normally be found only in small independent food shops.
Up to 100 stores will have been revamped by March next year, with the remaining branches following by the middle of 2013.
Head of corporate PR Clare Wilkes told FoodManufacture.co.uk:“On the food side we had become too close to the mainstream supermarket business. We wanted to take a step towards speciality and bring in some food experiences that would surprise and delight our customers.
Exclusive brands
“We’ve said we would scour the world for 100 amazing exclusive brands and we have 80 of them in High Street Kensington. They are ambient food products made by specialist producers: We have oils, vinegars, mozzarella and really lovely chocolate.”
When asked why the range did not include UK products, Wilkes said: “We already work very closely with specialist UK producers. Most of our food is manufactured here in the UK. We’re going to continue to work with our suppliers to make sure we have the very best of what they have to offer, but this is about complementing that range with international flavours and introducing our customers to completely new products.”
Wilkes denied that the focus on exotic lines would inevitably put a squeeze on suppliers of more everyday foods. “We’re taking a step towards specialism, but it’s not a quantum leap,” she said.
She added that M&S was keen to discuss new ideas with its food suppliers. “Innovation has long been a buzzword at Marks & Spencer,” she said. “Marc [Bolland, chief executive] is very committed to innovation and we’re always happy to hear of new ideas because they provide a key point of difference for us.”
Exotic foods
Paul Fieldhouse, chairman of brand strategy company Bryt, said that M&S’s experiences with sushi proved that UK suppliers could meet a demand for exotic foods.
“It’s made in the UK, and made very well, so I’m not sure is sourcing something from an AOC or DOC [former EU protected geographical status designations] is always going to be worth that significant premium,” he said.
“There’s a huge amount of skill and talent here, and artisan chefs who can convert into commercial and scaleable products.
“Having been a major supplier to M&S in the past, there was always a view that they could do so much with suppliers overseas, but if you could get the right ingredients and the investment in the right facilities, it was better to source from the UK.”
