Marks and Spencer has announced a major restructure of its stores, which will see 11 cafes close permanently, as well as the opening of six new food halls before Christmas
Marks and Spencer has confirmed it will shut 11 cafes nationwide as part of a major store restructure affecting its 300-plus food shops. The closures will impact fewer than 4% of locations, with branches in Anlaby, Hull, and Martlesham Heath, Ipswich, among those affected.
A spokesperson explained: “As we look to modernise our food business and offer the best of M&S Food to more people, more often, we’re investing in our store estate to give our customers the widest possible product range.
“This includes opening brand-new coffee shops offering delicious food and barista-made fairtrade coffee, including at our brand-new Bristol Cabot Circus store.
“In some of our small Food stores, where customers want a greater range of M&S Food, our transformation also involves repurposing cafe space across 11 small food stores, out of over 300 M&S cafes, coffee shops and coffee-to-go locations.”
The announcement follows the recent closure of M&S’s Wolverhampton city centre branch on Dudley Street, which shut its doors permanently on September 27 after opening in 1929.
Despite the cafe closures, the retailer’s transformation strategy includes launching additional food halls, with six new food stores set to open before Christmas, generating 200 jobs.
The retailer unveiled a fresh market-style Foodhall on Southampton Street, in Covent Garden, on October 15, and relaunched two revamped Foodhalls in Temple Fortune and Wimbledon.
Come November, South London will welcome two additional new Foodhalls at Clapham Common and Fulham Broadway, reports the Express.
Confirmed M&S closures in 2025:
- Wolverhampton store on Dudley Street — closed on September 27
- 11 in-store cafes across the country — including Anlaby, Hull, and Martlesham Heath, Ipswich
Confirmed new or transformed M&S stores in 2025:
- Cheltenham Centrum foodhall – opened April 9
- Warrington Riverside Outlet – opened July 3
- Tewkesbury Outlet – opened July 16
- Leytonstone foodhall – opened July 18
- Covent Garden foodhall – opened October 15
- Bristol Cabot Circus – opening November 13
- Clapham Common foodhall – opening November
- Fulham Broadway foodhall – opening November
- Putney High Street foodhall – date TBC
- Bath Southgate full-line store opening – date TBC
- Pudsey foodhall (transformed) – reopened June 18
- Ripon foodhall (transformed) – reopened July 24
- Kingston Park foodhall (transformed) – reopened August 6
- Merry Hill foodhall (transformed) – reopened August 8
- Brent Cross foodhall (transformed) – reopened August 11
- Orpington (transformed) – reopened August 21
- Pantheon Oxford Street foodhall (transformed) – reopened August 22
- Brooklands (transformed) – reopened September 24
- Aberdeen Union Square (transformed) – reopened October 8
- Wimbledon foodhall (transformed) – reopened October 13
- Temple Fortune foodhall (transformed) – reopened October 15
- Wheatley Doncaster (transformed) – reopening October 22
- Douglas – upcoming (transformed) – reopening November 26
- Craigavon Foodhall (transformed) – reopening November 28
- Merry Hill (transformed) – reopening November
- Chiswick (transformed) – reopening December
