IS YOUR M&S CLOSING? Marks & Spencer stores thought to be under threat of closure are revealed – is YOUR local favourite there?

A LIST of Marks & Spencer stores that could be closed has been released.

The most vulnerable stores have been singled out by retail analysts after the chain last week announced it was to close around 60 clothing and home stores – possibly affecting more than 2,000 jobs.

The store announced that it was going to focus on its more successful Simply Food stores as it posted an 80 per cent drop in half-year profits to £25.1 million.

But retail analysts have now released a list of M&S stores that will be closed down, with Local Data Company saying London, which has 27 stores, just one area that will inevitably lose stores.

M&S has not yet named the stores that will close under the move – with thousands of workers and communities still waiting to hear confirmation.The boss of the high street giant is set to close a number of shops

Local Data Company director Matthew Hopkinson said: “There are 35 towns and cities that have more than two M&S stores either on the high street, in a shopping centre or on the edge of town in a retail park.

“If one removes the large urban centres such as London, Glasgow and other cities, there are 22 towns where one might question the need for two stores.”

The Daily Mail reported that stores would be considered vulnerable if the town centre was already in decline.

But a Marks & Spencer spokesperson told The Sun Online: “We are very disappointed that anyone would choose to speculate in this way.

“This list is not based on any M&S data and we have not published any locations.

“What we have done is outlined plans to improve our store estate over the next five years which include opening 200 new Food stores and selling Clothing and Home from 60 fewer stores.”

M&S STORES THAT COULD BE CLOSED

Aberdeen
Ayr
Banbury
Barrow-in-Furness
Basildon
Birmingham
Blackburn
Blackpool
Bolton
Boston
Bournemouth
Brentwood
Bridlington
Brierley Hill
Bristol
Buxton
Carlisle
Chichester
Coventry
Darlington
Dundee
Durham
Fareham
Hereford
Hull
Kettering
King’s Lynn
Leamington Spa
Leeds
Leicester
Liverpool
Macclesfield
Maidstone
Manchester
Mansfield
Milton Keynes
Newcastle Upon Tyne
Northwich
Nottingham
Peterborough
Preston
Rochdale
Sheffield
Southampton
St Albans
Stockton-on-Tees
Stoke
Swansea
Swindon
Sunderland
Tunbridge Wells
Warrington
*According to Local Data Company

CEO Steve Rowe, who took over in April, is planning to close the stores over the next five years, but will open 200 more Simply Food shops across the UK by 2019 in the biggest shake up for years.

The chain also said it would refocus on international business to tackle losses of £45 million – and will be closing 53 stores globally including in France and China.

Rowe said the aim was to “build a sustainable business which will delight our customers, provide a robust foundation for future growth and deliver value for our shareholders in the long term.”

He added: “These are tough decisions, but vital to building a future M&S that is simpler, more relevant, multi-channel and focused on delivering sustainable returns.”

Marks & Spencer confirms it is to close SIXTY stores across the UK

MARKS AND SPENCER

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is the face of an lingerie range for Marks and Spencer

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Rosie Huntington-Whiteley launched her most recent range for M&S in June this year

Speaking about the closures on Good Morning Britain, Rowe said: "This is not the beginning of the end, it's the beginning of the beginning.

"What we're doing is reshaping our estate now to make it more relevant, more modern and more appropriate to how customers are shopping."

He added: "This program will create more jobs, it is not about job cuts."

It comes after M&S revealed more sales falls in its clothing division, with like-for-like sales down by 5.9 per cent in the first half.

The retailer has over 300 full-range sites and nearly 600 Simply Food shops in the UK.

It comes days after The Sun Online reported that dozens of stores around the UK could close as part of a massive cost-cutting drive.

It is thought that a number of stores could be relocated, while existing shops will see layouts changed to prioritise more profitable parts of the business.

Rowe is under pressure to turn M&S around after it has struggled to shift women's fashion.

Since taking over from the previous boss, Marc Bolland, in April, Rowe has axed more than 500 head office jobs in an attempt to cut down costs.

Marks & Spencer to close dozens of high street stores in business revamp

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BHS finally shut its doors in August after falling into administration earlier this year

There are no clues as to whether the store will expand its current online shop or what clothing lines - if any - will be dropped.

It comes just three months after another high street household name, BHS, shut the door on over 200 branches around the UK.

British Home Stores, a name that was a fixture on most high streets in the UK, disappeared after nearly a century after first opening in Brixton, London.

It called in administrators in June, with 11,000 workers losing their jobs.

Previous bosses Sir Philip Green and Dominic Chappell, have both come under scrutiny for the collapse and a £571million pension black hole.

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Alexa Chung celebrate the M&S Winter Archive by Alexa Collection launch party

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Marks and Spencer and Alexa Chung celebrate 'The Winter Archive by Alexa Collection' with launch party at Bush Hall, Shepherds Bush

The plans to drop clothing ranges from some M&S stores comes just days after it launched its latest range of clothing in collaboration with Alexa Chung.

The IT girl, model and author was recruited by the retailer in an attempt to revive dwindling sales.

The new Archive by Alexa collection went on sale last Tuesday and includes a range of trendy trench coats, dresses, shirts and shoes.

Alexa celebrated the launch two weeks ago with a star-studded party, where she wore on of the dresses from her collection.