The sad decline of M&S……

[GladysGeorgina]

I used to work for M&S in the late 80s and early 90s whilst at sixth form and then uni. I loved that job! I was treated well and paid well for my age. The store was always bustling and we would constantly be moving displays around to try to fit all the stock in. Customer service was top priority. I felt quite proud to work for the company and even didn’t mind wearing the truly dreadful uniforms of the time. I feel sad at watching the decline of M&S on the high street. Our local branch looks more sparse every time I go in. Hardly any staff. No identity. I need new work trousers so popped in at 4pm today. I’m in between sizes so chose 5 pairs of trousers and picked up two sizes for each pair. I was confused because both fitting rooms were closed so I asked an assistant. She was quite snotty and told me the fitting rooms close at 4pm each day due to not enough staff on the rota at that time of day. It’s Saturday and the store didn’t close until 6pm ffs. Apparently it’s ok because I can buy all the trousers and try them on at home. No thanks! I don’t want to pay £400 for 10 pairs of trousers and then lug them home, only to have to bring 9 pairs back for a refund. Don’t know why I’m writing this really. Probably because I was irritated and a bit sad too…….and I still don’t have any new work trousers!

Ditto for us at a Premier Inn at the start of the month. I stayed in another one last week, though, and the hot breakfast was cooked to order. (On the plus side, Caledonian MacBrayne ferries have reverted to a proper cooked breakfast service. During the pandemic they went over to pre-cooked breakfast kept hot in a box, and it was grim.)

Ditto for us at a Premier Inn at the start of the month. I stayed in another one last week, though, and the hot breakfast was cooked to order. (On the plus side, Caledonian MacBrayne ferries have reverted to a proper cooked breakfast service. During the pandemic they went over to pre-cooked breakfast kept hot in a box, and it was grim.)

They are having a massive issue getting staff. My nearest one is in a fairly large city that is in the top five biggest stores. I was chatting to a member of staff a few weeks back and she was saying that during the pandemic they offered voluntary redundancy and loads is staff took it. On the ladies floor they have only four full time members of staff, previously it was 11. In the foodhall there are no manned tills open until 9am, before that time everything is self service.

I wanted to,buy ready made curtains and have a look at the colours but guess what no store has them on display and no swatches.

I know I can buy them on line but it would be good to,see the shades in the store so I could make an informed decision

And the annoying call centre in South Africa

I’ve thought that the quality of the food has been declining for a while. We bought some party food and it all tasted the same: greasy and bland.

I’ve bought wide leg trousers from M&S forever which were cut well and hung well and recently the quality of the material has declined so that it bobbles after a few washes. Disappointing!

And what’s happened to the sets of cotton pants? The material and designs used to be good and look fresh and now it’s all murky colours and wierd fabrics. No thanks!

I love the much wider online choices, swiftly despatched to a local foodhall M&S for collection and returnable/ refunded with equal speed.

Hate shopping and sweaty changing rooms....the M&S store on outskirts of Stoke is open until closing time, although staff were sparse on the ground. Found several items including bras although popular sizes had limited pickings.

For me, the biggest problem is how much of their clothing has switched to synthetic fabrics. Where is the cotton? Some of it still looks decent, but I won't wear polyester.

Similarly, the smart work trousers - they used to at least offer some bootcut options (though without pockets and a synthetic mix, again: where is the cotton?). Length size is also a faff - I've tried on in the past regular trousers to have them way too short, long trousers to have them way too long, long trousers to have them an okay length, regular trousers to have them an okay length, all in the same visit - where is the consistency!

I agree it's such a shame, not just M&S as others say it's a lot of the high street shops.
But M&S was always my go-to shop, where I knew I'd find something that fits me, reliable, comfortable.
I hate online shopping for clothes. Things never look the same on me as they do on the website, so I like to go into the shop and browse, try things on. I don't want the hassle of ordering, waiting for it to come in the post, trying on, repackaging, returning, waiting for refund.

I bought a great light quilted jacket in the summer. I’ve just ordered a pair of leopard print hiking boots and a padded gilet. Their socks and knickers are excellent. I think they’ve upped their game recently.

Oh, and their linen trousers are great. I live in them in the summer.

Can they actually guarantee that the lingerie that's (a) in the shop, and (b) being supplied online via delivery or Click & Collect hasn't been wanked on?

Because it seem like a lot of men's missions to do precisely that. Absolutely revolting - and I'd rather not take the risk given the amount of blatant boasting online.

I live overseas and visited the Marble Arch branch recently for the first time in six years. I went in hopes of decent woollen knitwear, once in abundance. Cashmere at one end and everything else polyesters, etc. Nothing in between. Lairy colours. I should say the lack of wool obtains in Melbourne, too. Woolovers for me in future.

The presence of "other" brands, e.g. Jaeger/SeaSalt was new to me and I was initially encouraged but I found them, ahem, frumpy, but this could have been down to the new busy print which has swamped the market. For context I'm 68.

Shoes and boots shocking. I like a bit of clumpiness and fugly, me, but really.

Bras were good, a real range of unpadded bras, unlike shops in Melbourne.

My local store is great. The service is brilliant though stock could be better at times but the staff are helpful and will do as much as they can to find you what you want. I guess it depends on the store.

Can they actually guarantee that the lingerie that's (a) in the shop, and (b) being supplied online via delivery or Click & Collect hasn't been wanked on?

Do you not think you might notice? The idiocy of some people. 🙄

They've gone massively down hill in recent years. Standard multipacks of knickers I've bought this year are already falling apart - whereas the ones I bought many years ago cough are still going strong! I went in a few weeks ago looking for a nice big cardigan for autumn... Everything in a weird colour, badly finished, dodgy looking seams, cheap polyester feel... I got one from h&m in the end, which although also polyester, was half the price and feels much nicer!

They don't seem to know who to market to anymore. The "young" stuff is always just off the mark of trendy or covered with sequins or some horrible print, and the classic/basics are shit quality.

I don't want to have to 'notice'.

I want to buy new clothes.

This is a disturbing theory - I've never picked up underwear in M&S or anywhere else thinking someone might have wanked over it??
What on earth makes you think this??

I did too. And chiropody. You'll never believe how subsidised their staff restaurants were! And you were guaranteed never to be made redundant.

They really don't.

With stock no longer made in the UK there can no longer be the stringent quality control of days gone by.

I remember the days of measuring the stitches per inch on the bedding and god help the manufacturers if it was wrong!

Selectors went every week to check their suppliers, designs and merchandise coming through and to discuss new ideas . I guarantee that doesn't happen today - it can't with so much made so far away.

Though, to be fair, we’ve just had dinner courtesy of the food hall, and it was lush.

I was gutted on Saturday to find that the home department has all but disappeared from our nearest branch. It used to be brilliant - we kitted out our old house there when we first moved and I was looking forward to doing the same in our new house. But there was nothing there! It used to be a whole massive floor with furniture, lighting, kitchen wares, curtains... it was fab! Now, most of the floor is taken up with a cafe, an optician (?!) and a bureau de change. What's left of the home department is just bedding and towels, a few framed prints...and Christmas decorations.

We have a red cotton t shirt from the old St. Michael. I've worn it, my eldest has and now my youngest has it. Good quality, thick cotton. The cotton t-shirts now are nowhere near the same quality.

Sorry about your dad but that’s not unreasonable. They can’t hold items forever and I’m pretty sure there’s a 7 day collection policy. Couldn’t someone else have collected it on your behalf?

The local Sainsbury’s has a notice saying their changing rooms are permanently closed.

M&S are diversifying into too many different brands, as are Next and others. It’s too confusing. I ordered a pair of jeans online and they arrived properly packaged, but when I undid the packaging, it was clear they’d been worn and returned for a refund. There were no tags and a large red hair bow in the back pocket. No idea how that got past quality control and the returns staff. The assistant at the local food hall, where I collect from, was appalled. No apology from M&S though.