Marks & Spencer has announced plans to permanently close dozens of stores after revealing a £201million loss in the face of Covid.
The retail giant said at least 30 stores would shut and 70 would be restructured as it battles to bounce back from tough trading conditions in the past year.
M&S currently has over 250 “full line” sites selling clothing and home as well as food ranges, and is set to cut this number down to around 180.
Some stores will be transformed into “food only” and others will be moved to new locations - which, it is understood, could include former Debenhams branches.
"Our objective for the full line estate is to achieve a fully modernised core of 180 stores," Wednesday's trading statement said.
"M&S had 254 full line stores at year end. While practically all Clothing & Home departments in these stores contribute positive cash, a number are in long term decline, struggle to cover their allocated central costs as a percentage of sales and cannot justify future investment," it added.
Under the plan, which will see M&S enter the "next phase" of its transformation, around 100 stores will be 'rotated'. This will mean either relocating to a food only store, another full line store or consolidating multiple stores into one.
"In around 30 locations which can no longer support a store we will close, recapturing trade in nearby stores or online," the company said.
The food and retail chain today told shareholders that total revenues dropped after lower clothing and home sales despite an improvement in its food operations.
It reported that food like-for-like revenues increased by 1.3% over the past year but the company saw its clothing and home business report a 31.5% slump despite rapid online growth.
Despite a £201million loss, the retailer said its balance sheet is also "stronger than expected" following the impact of the pandemic.
Steve Rowe, chief executive at Marks & Spencer, said: "In a year like no other we have delivered a resilient trading performance, thanks in no small part to the extraordinary efforts of our colleagues.
"In addition, by going further and faster in our transformation through the Never the Same Again programme, we moved beyond fixing the basics to forge a reshaped M&S.
"With the right team in place to accelerate change in the trading businesses and build a trajectory for future growth, we now have a clear line of sight on the path to make M&S special again.
"The transformation has moved to the next phase."
Marks & Spencer becomes the latest grocer to share its net sales over the year after one of the toughest years on record for the high street.
Tesco last month said pre-tax profits tumbled by almost 20% to £825million over the past year, despite 'exceptional' sales during the pandemic.
The grocer revealed that its profits fell by around a fifth, after coronavirus costs offset surging sales.
It said profits were weighed down by Covid-related costs and the company's decision to hand £585million in business rates relief back to the Government.
Big Four grocer Morrisons also reported a £27million loss as it announced plans to open four new stores over the next 12 months in a bid to help ramp up sales after a difficult year.
By December last year, Britain's supermarkets had paid back £1.8billion in Covid support to the Treasury.
