Marks & Spencer has announced it's acquired 50% of Ocado in a move that will see it deliver online groceries for the first time.
The upmarket supermarket confirmed the deal on Monday - six months after first speaking of a potential £750million merger.
The tie-up will allow shoppers to choose from over 6,500 M&S food products when shopping online at Ocado.com.
This will be in addition to Ocado’s own brands and own label products and full range of branded goods.
However, the website will not start selling M&S products until 1 September 2020, when its arrangement with Waitrose terminates.
Marks and Spencer said the new joint venture will combine its food with Ocado's technology to create "an unrivalled online offer for our customers".
Steve Rowe, M&S chief executive, said: "I have always believed that M&S Food could and should be online. The addition of Ocado to our family of businesses marks M&S’s first truly transformational step in shaping our future as a digital first retailer, as we combine the magic of M&S food with Ocado’s award-winning service to create a new and compelling proposition."
Ocado Retail director Tim Steiner added: "Ocado Retail's future, as part of a joint venture with M&S, is full of opportunity.
"The new company will be able to offer customers even greater range, service, quality and value. Our collaboration will also allow us to grow the business faster, add more jobs, and create more value for all our stakeholders. We are very excited to be working together."
