In the world of fast fashion, perhaps sustainable brands have also been able to find their ground. One such brand is England-based Marks & Spencer which operates in India through a joint venture with Reliance India Private Limited. The brand which recently opened its 100th store in India has been able to turn its business profitable post the pandemic, and now looks at further ramping up its presence in the country. “We typically look at the vicinity of 10-12 stores a year. The fact these stores have been successful has propelled us to open new shops. Therefore we’re looking at every opportunity that comes up. There are a lot of shopping malls, which are coming up in tier-1 and tier-2 cities. We will evaluate each of those opportunities and see if there is a right fit between the brand and the location. Only then, we’ll go ahead and open,” Ritesh Mishra, managing director, Marks & Spencer India, told BrandWagon Online.
Marks and Spencer Reliance India Private Ltds’ revenue from operations rose 53% to Rs 1087.7 crore in FY22 from Rs 710.6 crore in FY21, as per regulatory filings accessed by business intelligence platform, Tofler. The apparel and homecare brand reported a net profit of Rs 278.5 crore in FY22 as opposed to a net loss of Rs 72.4 crore, during the same period in the corresponding year. Interestingly, data from the Registrar of Companies (RoC) filings reveal that the company upped its ad spend by 60% to Rs 58.47 crore in FY22 from Rs 36.5 crore in FY21.
Building the product range
The retailer claims that over the years, it has expanded its product range right from clothing line to winter wear to lingerie, even home which includes mugs, beddings, dinnerware, glassware, cushions and accessories, besides shoes and kidswear and beauty products. “We’ve got a very wide collection, about more than 6,000 styles in our collection, and that spans across categories,” he explained.
The company further claims that some of its categories have grown tremendously and now account for a substantial portion of the revenue. For instance, lingerie and winter wear are two such categories. “A quarter of our business is lingerie. It is interesting to see how this particular category has grown. Initially, we were not very gung-ho about this category. Not to mention within this, we have grown our product offerings and expanded sub-categories. We launch one innovative product every month, under this category. Within lingerie, sleepwear is another strong sub-category” Mishra said.
Moreover, M&S India claims that last fiscal winter wear grew by about 47% and remains a key area of strength. Similarly, it claims that in India, swimwear as a category has grown 228% – year- till-date (YTD). For Mishra, the company is making the most of its presence in a category such as swimwear largely due to the absence of a competitor. “We also have developed our range when it comes to wear. There is a technology which we use called, ‘Stay New’, which allows T-shirts and other clothing items to remain fresh, even after 18-20 cycles of washes. This increases the value of the product as it enhances its longevity,” he noted. Not to mention, linen has grown till now in this year by as much as 27%, as a category, it claimed.
M&S’ India play
Known as a traditional London-based brand, Marks and Spencer, aka M&S India, is one of the few premium brands to enter India with its first store in 2001. It later signed a joint venture in 2008 with Reliance Retail to form Marks & Spencer Reliance India Pvt. Ltd. From then to now, a lot has changed in the retail market in the country with the likes of Zara, H&M, and Uniqlo, among others, entering India. The competition, if anything, has turned fierce. “From a customer perspective, M&S has always been a very international brand. A lot of Indians who have travelled to London have seen M&S at its full strength on those high streets. What they brought back with them is the ‘westernisation’ of dressing style. That helped us a lot in terms of building our business in India,” Mishra explained.
The company further claims that travelling Indias, whether residing in metros or tier-1 and tier-2 cities, have always been aware of the brand, which also played a role in cementing its position in the market. Furthermore, in terms of the products being sold in India, it claims that not many changes were made both in terms of design and quality. “Customers already knew the brand and it has a very high recall. Furthermore, our pricing too has played a role, with customers stating it is a high-quality product back with good value,” he noted.
The company currently claims that 60%, that is, 60 stores are spread between metros and tier cities, due to the availability of real estate, while tier-2 cities account for the rest (40%) of 40 stores. As for the size of its stores, Mishra goes on to say that typically it varies between 15,000-20,000 square feet. “While the 100th store which we opened in Mumbai is a large one at 22,000 square feet. This is largely because of the huge range of products the store has to offer to our customers,” he said.
As for distribution, like all its peers in the business, M&S India too follows an omni-channel strategy. While offline stores account for three-quarters of its sales, online accounts for the remaining other quarter of its sales. “The online business is further divided into – one is the brand store online and secondly, we sell through our third-party partners. While the online space continues to grow, we are committed to investing across all three channels. We want to make sure where the customer is,” he added.
With more and more international brands debuting in India, the competition will only intensify in the future, will M&S India be able to continue to maintain its position? Only time will tell.