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M&S to open its most eco-friendly store in the UK

By Emily Smoucha | 04 March 2011, 13:52 BS

Marks & Spencer will open its most sustainable shop this April. The new 12,400 square foot Simply Food shop, in Sheffield, will minimise its environmental impacts in its construction and operation.

Green building

The new shop is being built on a former brownfield site. Building the store, rather than renovating one, is allowing M&S to use more recovered materials in the store's construction.

The timber used is expected to be 100 per cent FSC certified, and all of the bricks that will be used are to come from an old mill. Once the walls are up, the floor will be made of polished concrete. Any waste generated during construction is set to be recycled.

Eco-friendly features

M&S to open its most eco-friendly store in the UK

M&S' eco-friendly Simply Food store is being built on a brownfield site in Sheffield

Not only is the construction of the building going to have fewer environmental impacts, but the store's water supply, heat and lighting are all also eco friendly. The toilets will use rainwater, and the heat given off by the refrigeration will contribute to the store's heat supply. Reusing the heat is expected to lower CO2 emissions by 23 per cent. To keep the shop well lit, LED lights as well as sun pipes will be installed.

"This store represents a big milestone in our sustainable construction programme as we are installing a host of unique technologies and features," said Clem Constantine, M&S director of property & store development. "Each of these sustainable features is remarkable in its own right, however, by bringing them all together in one development, something that is rarely done by retailers, we will achieve a whole that is worth far more than the sum of its parts. The learnings we have taken from building the store, coupled with those we will make over its lifetime, will help us achieve our goal of becoming the world's most sustainable major retailer by 2015."

Benefiting people and animals

Customers with electric cars will be able to charge them directly in the car park while they shop.

A'living wall' also supplied by rain water will provide shelter for native animals while insulating the store and filtering out pollution. Birds will also find homes on the site's bird boxes, and the shop will be adorned with 62 different types of plants.

Sustainable learning

The store in Sheffield is to be the first of two "sustainable learning" shops M&S plans to open. The goal of these stores is for M&S to learn the most appropriate building techniques so that future stores can be built from 100 per cent recycled material, have a net carbon emission of zero during construction as well as benefit the biodiversity of the area.

Green certification

Once completed, the store should receive two separate recognitions for its design. It's expected to earn an 'Excellent' rating from BRE Environmental Assessment Method, one of the most recognised accreditations.

The shop is also set to earn 37.5 of 40 points from the Considerate Constructors Scheme, a nationwide construction initiative to help recognize positive efforts of the construction industry.

"Sustainability is increasingly important in the construction and property sector and major companies like M&S have a crucial role in driving that process, particularly given the relationship not just with suppliers, but also with consumers," said Paul King, UK Green Building Council CEO. "This new M&S store at Ecclesall Road is an impressive achievement, not only for its host of environmental features and the positive social effect it will have on the local community, but also the lessons that will be learnt for both M&S and the wider construction industry."

Marks and Spencers Customer Analysis

Customers are the heart of our business so it’s essential we understand what they want from M&S. Our Customer Insight Unit (CIU) makes sure we are listening to our customers, understanding what they think and how they behave.

Consumer Confidence Index

Though Britain has returned to low levels of economic growth, concerns about the economy meant uncertainty continued to be the main characteristic of the marketplace.

Consumer sentiment is that they’ve ‘weathered the storm’ and adapted well in a difficult economic climate. As a result consumer confidence levels have doubled over the last 12 months, though as illustrated in the index above, they remain in negative territory.

However, increasing confidence has not marked a return to frivolous spending. Consumers remain cautious and have adopted a trend for ’clever spending‘, flexing their budget according to personal priorities. Put simply, they are willing to spend more, but only on the things that matter to them.

Through a combination of market data analysis, research and customer feedback, our CIU identifies emerging trends and how external factors are impacting consumer behaviour. This ensures our customers’ needs are always recognised in business decisions.

Clothing Market

• Price remains one of the main drivers for purchases, resulting in the continued growth of the value market. However, after a year of economising consumers have moved beyond a wardrobe made up of cheaper staples and started to invest in quality versatile pieces, this trend is particularly strong among the over 45s.
• A greater appetite for investment pieces has translated into growth in the mid-priced clothing market and a strengthening position in premium clothing.
• Customers have sought easy, affordable ways to experiment with key trends, such as footwear and accessories.
• In 2008/09 the lingerie market suffered as women deemed luxurious underwear an unnecessary extravagance and stuck to basics, but this year women started to treat themselves again.

M&S Clothing response

Our ‘good’, ‘better’, ‘best’ pricing structure caters for ‘clever spending’, allowing consumers to trade up or down to suit their priorities. We’ve encouraged customers to trade up by, focusing on detailing and quality fabrics in brands such as Autograph, and have extended Portfolio across footwear and accessories so customers can update their wardrobe and experiment with new trends. You can view womenswear here.

food Market

• ver the year price inflation has worked its way out of the market to the point of deflation, with falling food prices masking the fact UK customers were buying more.
• Deals continued to be a key driver, with 30% of the market sold on promotion. However, copycat deals across the market meant consumers responded well where quality and innovation were the point of difference, as they looked for deals that offered something new and/or special.
• As confidence improved consumers started to trade up to an alternative supermarket or switched to better, premium ranges within their supermarket of choice.
• Consumers also began to treat themselves again, resulting in growth in confectionery and bakery markets. They also adopted a sense of nostalgia, creating a revival in retro products with a modern update.

Response

In 2008/09 a demand for value saw many food retailers attempt to reposition themselves as low cost providers. However, we invested in margins to provide customers with better value, without compromising quality. This has served us well as customers began to trade up. Quality remains the point of difference between our ‘Dine In’, promotion and market imitations. To keep the promotion fresh we regularly include our newest products, mainly from our Cook! range. Click here to see our food section for more detail.

Marks and Spencer: Wiki Plan A

Summary from wiki

On 15 January 2007, M&S launched an initiative, known as "Plan A",^[36] to dramatically increase the environmental sustainability of the business within 5 years and expected to cost £200 million.

The plan covers "100 commitments over 5 years to address the key social and environmental challenges facing M&S today and in the future" with the tag-line "Because there is no Plan B". The commitments span five themes: climate change, waste, sustainable raw materials, 'fair partnership' and health, with the aim that, by 2012, it will:

• Become carbon neutral
• Send no waste to landfill
• Extend sustainable sourcing
• Help improve the lives of people in their supply chain
• Help customers and employees live a healthier life-style

Despite an 18% fall in the share price in January 2008, following publication of their latest trading statement, the company confirmed that they would be continuing with the plan, saying that there were 'compelling commercial — as well as moral — reasons to do so'

The now iconic brown, reusable, hessian bag was first introduced in 2007 as an early part of this plan. It is hoped that this will reduce the use of plastic carrier bags over the next few years.

May 2008 saw the introduction of the 5p carrier bag scheme at M&S stores, with customers now paying 5p per standard sized vest carrier bag for food purchases. This implementation was brought about through the Plan A scheme,to try to discourage use of the traditional plastic bag. All profits from the sale of food bags go to Groundwork UK.

In becoming carbon neutral the company has committed to only use carbon offsetting as a last resort,^] restricted to cases "where it is required by government or where the technology for green air or road transport will not be available for the foreseeable future".^[43]

As of August 2008, M&S had three wind turbines in operation, one at Methlick and two near Strichen, generating enough power to supply three stores via the National Grid.^[44] In April 2009 the company began purchasing 2.6 TWh of renewable energy (wind and hydroelectric) from Npower, enough to power all Marks & Spencer stores and offices in England and Wales.^[45]

Company chairman Sir Stuart Rose is personally committed to further promoting green issues and the recycling of plastic bottles. He has also pledged to reduce non-glass wastage by 25% and plastic carrier bag usage by 33% in the near future.

Marks and Spencer

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simply fuller longer
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simply more....
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our food labelling
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This is what they say......

What you can do

We want to involve you in Plan A. We've created a series of pledges that you can take to make your lifestyle more sustainable. Some are quick and easy, and some need a bit more commitment, but all of them will help you to make a difference

Once you have taken a pledge and registered, we'll plant your very own tree on this site where you can display your pledges and monitor your progress. So why not take a pledge today? Together we can make a difference.


These are the categories of the different pledges you can take:

There are a few pledges you can take under each category

Climate change pledges

eg.

change to energy saving light bulbs
green your work place
turn it off

Waste pledge

use reusable bag
recycle your furniture
grow your own compost
recycle your chrismtas cards

Sustainable raw materials pledges

use free range eggs
use less water
oxfam

Fair partner pledges

invest ethically
travel responsively
buy fairtrade coffee

Health pledges

eat your five a day
cut down salt



they are working in partnership with....



breakthrough
butterfly conservation
closed loop recycling
groundwork
oxfam
macmillan cancer support
prostate cancer charity
shelter
woodland trust
wwf

M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange

Nothing to wear, but no room for more? Free up some space and fund next season's style. Bring the M&S clothes you no longer wear into Oxfam and receive a £5 off voucher when you next spend £35 at M&S on clothing, home and beauty.

Since January 2008...

• More than 1.5 million M&S customers have participated in the ongoing M&S and Oxfam Clothes Exchange
• Saving over 5 million items of unwanted clothing from going to landfill
• And raising over £3 million for Oxfam
• This money could be enough to help provide safe water for 4.8 million people
• Or 600,000 mosquito nets to protect children from disease
• Or 3 million new school books

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