Marks & Spencer reports declining sales

Marks & Spencer reports declining sales

Marks & Spencer has reported further falls in sales for the seventh consecutive such quarter for the company. The report filed in the high street said that the store’s sales fell by 5.4 per cent during the 14 weeks to July 9. This performance is even worse than their performances in the entire last year with the falling sales of 5.1 per cent. The worst performing sections of their stores has been the clothing and home wares departments.

The company however reported improved food sales, which was up by 0.7 per cent in the first quarter. It was expected that these sales would also fall down by 3.1 per cent. Company’s chief executive Stuart Rose said in a statement: “The trading environment continues to be very tough. We are pleased with the progress in food with its return to like-for-like sales growth.”

He added: “In general merchandise, the figures reflect the significant change in our trading stance compared to this time last year when our priority was to clear overstocks. This was achieved through deeper markdowns and extended sale periods. This boosted sales figures but impacted profitability.”

The total general merchandise sales for the stores were down by 10.3 per cent and down 11.4 per cent on a like-for-like basis.