M&S is set to open a new national distribution centre in Milton Keynes, which will expand its food capacity and accelerate the modernisation of its end to end supply chain.
365,000 sq ft facility
The new facility spans 365.000 sq ft and is due to become operational by September. It will create 360 new jobs and will be operated by XPO Logistics. The site will supply ambient M&S Food items, in addition to a broader range of cleaning and household products, to the South of England regions increase M&S Food’s ambient product capacity by up to 60%.
Addressing waste and availability issues
M&S said in a statement: “Unlocking value in its food supply chain is a key part of M&S Food’s transformation plan, and at its Full Year Results in May, M&S committed to resolve the longstanding issues in food availability and waste to drive greater improvements for customers”.
According to the retailer, solving these issues provides a very significant financial opportunity.
M&S has already kickstarted improvements to its supply chain through its Vangarde programme, which targets waste reduction and customer experience improvement through optimised shop keeping processes such as better forecasting, allocation and stock counts.
The programme has already been implemented in 93 stores across its estate so far, and has resulted in more productive stores generating lower waste and higher sales through an improved customer experience.
‘Major step forward’
M&S Food MD Stuart Machin said: “Our new distribution centre is great news for Milton Keynes and a major step forward for M&S, unlocking the value of our food supply chain and supporting our future growth plans. Many of our customers’ shopping habits have changed over recent months and our new distribution centre will enable us to respond faster and more flexibly to customer demand, providing greater product availability and significantly improving the service we provide our customers.”
It’s important to note that M&S is due to launch next month an online shopping service for the first time thanks to its partnership with Ocado.
Check our Ocado hub and availability and service hub for more related content.
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