MARKS & SPENCER TO LAUNCH NEW WEBSITES IN FOUR EUROPEAN MARKETS AS PART OF ITS ONGOING INTERNATIONAL MULTI-CHANNEL STRATEGY

Marks & Spencer (M&S) today announces it will enter four new European markets on Monday 19 November, with the launch of localised customer websites in Germany, Spain, Austria and Belgium.

The move, which is part of M&S' ongoing strategy to become a leading international, multi-channel retailer, marks significant progress against plans outlined in May 2012 to trade online in ten international markets this financial year and follows the successful launch of websites in France and Ireland.
M&S will launch with a fully localised offer for each of these European markets. The sites will trade in Euros and offer the preferred local language, payment and delivery options.

In all four countries M&S products are already in demand with online shoppers using its international delivery service, which sees products delivered to over 80 countries via the UK website. The four markets are amongst the most popular delivery destinations and localising the offer will help M&S grow its business and take its customer engagement in these markets to another level.

Marc Bolland, Chief Executive of Marks & Spencer, said: "This is us moving forward with our plan to transform M&S from traditional British retailer to a leading international, multi-channel retailer. M&S is a brand that's synonymous with British quality, style and value and this move enables us to extend the reach of our brand to more new markets."

Laura Wade-Gery, Executive Director, E-Commerce Multi-channel at Marks & Spencer commented: "Entering these countries with online capabilities allows us to serve customers right across some of the biggest and fastest growing online fashion markets in Europe. Since 2008 we've been in dialogue with the customers who already use our international delivery service and we've learnt much from them.

With our new sites we can provide customers with what they want - a fully localised service that enables them to shop with M&S in the way they want to."
The new websites will provide customers with access to a comprehensive range of over 15,000 stylish, quality M&S products, including womenswear, lingerie, menswear, kidswear, and a selection of homeware.

In the UK, M&S is pioneering a leading multi-channel offer across web, mobile and in-store innovation. Its popular Shop Your Way service provides customers with flexible, convenient order and delivery options - including free next day collection from its stores.

Ends -

Notes to Editors:
· From Wednesday 31st October the landing pages of the new M&S websites will be found at:
Germany www.marksandspencer.de
Spain www.marksandspencer.es
Belgium www.marksandspencer.be
Austria www.marksandspencer.at

· The new online capabilities are part of M&S' strategy announced at its November 2010 business update to become a leading international, multi-channel retailer. To do this, M&S will set up tailored websites for specific local markets - its first international website, www.marksandspencer.fr launched in October 2011 and www.marksandspencer.ie, launched in April 2012.

About Marks & Spencer

· Marks & Spencer is one of the UK's leading retailers and employs more than 81,000 people worldwide. M&S sells high quality, great value clothing and home products as well as outstanding quality food. Over 20 million customers visit its UK stores each week and its website receives over 3.4 million weekly visitors. · M&S was founded over 128 years ago and currently has over 730 UK stores and over 390 international stores across Europe, the Middle East and Asia, as well as a growing e-commerce offer.

Original source: Marks & Spencer