UK retailer Marks & Spencer has announced plans to open a new clothing and home distribution centre in Hertfordshire in early 2019.
The 495,000 square foot Welham Green site, which was previously owned by supermarket giant Tesco, will serve 150 stores in the south east of the country.
However, the retailer has also said that it will cease operations at its Neasden centre in North London, and will transfer work to other sites in its network.
“M&S is changing and we are transforming our stores and supply chain to better serve our customers," said Gordon Mowat, director of clothing and home supply chain logistics.
“The new site in Welham will deliver better service and availability for our customers and enable us to become a faster, more agile, lower cost retailer. The location has fantastic transport links and we’re looking forward to building a great operation in Hertfordshire."
He added that the decision to move operations from Neasden to is "not one we have taken lightly", but is an important part of the retail group's transformation plan.
M&S currently operates 19 distribution centres and warehouses across its network, including large centres in Swindon, Castle Donington and Bradford.
Retail Transformation
M&S launched its five-year transformation plan in November, with an intention to slow the opening of its food stores, and build on the progress made in the clothing and home unit.
The retailer reported a 'mixed performance' in its third-quarter results, which were released last week.
Like-for-like sales in its home market declined by 1.4% in the quarter, with food sales down 0.4% and clothing & home sales down 2.8%.
"Price investment before Christmas and a strong performance from seasonal lines helped late trading," said CEO Steve Rowe.
"As outlined at our interim results, we are making further changes to get the business back on track in the year ahead."
Earlier this month, M&S also announced the appointment of Humphrey Singer as its new group finance director, and unveiled a new IT programme as part of cost-cutting plans.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
