To think M&S are Christmas crap?

[CadburyFestiveFriends]

Went to a very large M&S last night to do the Christmas shop with DH.
The shelves were full but all of the Christmas ranges had 23rd/24th.
The ‘normal’ ranges had even less than that, most the 22nd (2 days!!!!😡)
^ Most of these products were not freezable - not that we have the space anyway and we are hosting through to Boxing Day!

DH picked up a pack of 9 fancy mince pies (not reduced) and realised only when we got home they had yesterday’s bloody date on! So they were selling them unreduced on the evening of expiration - you at the least expect shelf food like that to have a good few days/week on them- I’m tempted to return them and complain.

Now I do understand ‘either buy it or don’t’ but AIBU to think that as a ‘high end’ supermarket you expect a little better than this just before Christmas ^

(I’ve noticed it through the year too and have mentioned it to staff several times - whole sections filled with perishables that have that same days date on!- what use is that to anyone? We have elderly, pregnant, small children and one immune compromised guest so I’m not taking the risk serving food over use by.

I love the food but after last night I’m tempted to just stop shopping there for occasions- it’s so so disappointing, the atmosphere was awful as other shoppers were equally annoyed by it and places like Sainsbury’s and ASDA never seem to have the problem!

Mine was great. A couple of days ago I bought some lovely looking stuff with expiration Christmas or boxing day.

I wonder if people have just got there before you and already bought the longer expiration date stuff

*When I’ve mentioned it through the year it’s always met with a ‘we have a supply problem’ or ‘They’ve been more/less popular than we expected’

^ This is pretty poor stock management at the best of times but Christmas??? Surely they know that there will be mass demand for products with dates covering the 24th-26th!

Last night there was a crowd of shoppers wanting the items, with money ready, but not buying from the full shelves as all the dates were pants! I feel like with the state of the current high street stuff like this is just asking to go out of business.

Haven’t bought and wouldn’t buy food from M&S ever again did it once years ago and most expensive load of shite.

Would rather shop in small local shops or Aldi and Booths if I need a Supermarket.

Yes. Just had the same. Stuff that is clearly for Xmas day, ie pigs in blankets. Expiry date 22.12. Aghhhhhh. I'm fuming. Fortunately the stuff I got can be frozen so will do that but it is really annoying

Some of the Christmas ranges (a few chilled items) had either Christmas Eve or day on but given we are hosting till Boxing Day it’s still shoddy! No opportunity for left overs without warning people it is ‘technically’ out of date now.

(DH and I will usually eat things a few days over. I’m more cautious atm as pregnant but we don’t inflict our choices on others so always tell people if something is past use by!

It's still quite early though, for reasons to do with work we had to do the Christmas food shop yesterday. We had £80 of M and S vouchers saved up so treated ourselves but would never do the big shop there, not because if dates but the price! Went to Tesco for that. Still managed to get all the veg which was dated the 26th and the party food just went in the freezer the freezer.

I’m fuming about these bloody mince pies - £3 for these fancy shelf items and they had yesterday’s date!

They have always been crap at selling short dated food. I bought fish once, got home and put it in the fridge. When I wanted to eat it the next day I noticed that it expired the day I bought it. I was quite cross but was told by M & S they had done nothing wrong. They hadn't of course but I still felt it was poor show. I'm super careful when I shop there now. I'd boycott it but I love their food and I can only afford a few treats per month from there anyway.

YAB a bit U, it’s still quite a few days before Xmas for some fresh food. Annoying if you can’t do the big shop any later on though. I’m working on Monday so it will either be Sunday or Xmas Eve

Last night there was a crowd of shoppers wanting the items, with money ready, but not buying from the full shelves as all the dates were pants! I feel like with the state of the current high street stuff like this is just asking to go out of business.

So what's the solution? They can't lie about the dates and write 25/26 if they're not, they can't leave empty shelves until that stock comes in.

A bit off topic but surely you’ll still eat them?

@slashlover

If it were me I’d produce only about 50% of the amount until I was able to have appropriate dates for Christmas - the majority of the food I saw last night will go to waste.

I’d then produce more once it could have till the 26th/27th on it 👍🏻

They can't just shut down the factories for two days though. The veg is either going to be packed and sold at a reduced price in the stores or wasted at the factory level if it's not going to be sent to the store. Thye might as well try and get some money from it (an I always nip in for the reduced veg, it's not going to go off in one day).

YANBU but I have found that M&S have very short dates on their food. I've bought avocados from there which "expired" before they were even ripe! I don't eat meat and we are all healthy so less of a risk, but I am ok with eating their food a few days past the date.

M & s have missed out on so many sales by not doing proper online food shopping with deliveries, I know they are joining Ocado next year but until then shoppers have no option but to go in the stores as they only do limited food on click & collect.

When I worked there pre dc. People use to dig for the stuff behind leaving the rubbish dates.

The cynic in me thinks they have the goods dated 25th onwards in there warehouse but don't put them out until all the earlier dates stuff has sold. No-one would buy the earlier dated stuff otherwise. They rely on some people buying what they can and freezing it or not noticing so they can sell the earlier dates goods

*their warehouse!

I noticed this too - I wanted a Yule log and the dates were all pre Christmas.
It is happening in other Supermarkets too, but it's not quite do bad - use by dates of upto 28/12 whereas I'm sure last year things had Jan dates.

M & S have changed many of the companies that manufacture their food, we had one of the factories near us, they did most of the cakes, sandwiches & ready meals, but M & S dropped them a couple of years ago. M & S insist on exclusive rights to the manufacturers so when they take their business elsewhere hundreds of jobs are lost.

The mince pies will be fine.

The thing is though there are plenty of people who don’t spend Christmas Day with all their family.
There will be lots of people who are hosting family get togethers this weekend or are working over the festive period so having an early celebration and so those dates would suit them absolutely fine.
I understand that it’s annoying and you’d like your Christmas shop done sooner than later to avoid the Christmas Eve chaos, but just because you personally won’t be eating those items until Christmas Day, it doesn’t mean no one else in the country will either.

YANBU at all. I went in on Thursday and all the dates then were for the next 2 days, all Christmas meal stuff. Pigs in blankets and turkeys. I assumed pp are freezing it. But then why not buy it from the freezer section. I’m going back closer to 25th to get some better date stuff. Bit annoying really.

I do check their dates because in the year I notice they have such sort dates. Don’t know why. It’s frustrating.

I would have thought the Christmas stuff they’ve been selling for ages now should have longer dates.

I noticed folk doing their Christmas shop in Tesco yesterday. Isn’t it a bit early?

@worriedandannoyed. They don't keep stuff in their warehouses. There isn't room. It's a continuous cycle of items coming in from suppliers and being reloaded into their own trailers/subcontractors trailers on the same day. It's poor stock rotation at the shop.

My DH works for the subcontractor with the contract for M&S foods and I've been around the depot.