Retail giant M&S has announced plans for a new fashion distribution hub in Lichfield set to employ 600 people.
The company has agreed a conditional deal to acquire a 437,00 sq ft warehouse from ASOS for £67.5 million as part of ambitions to double the size of its online fashion business.
Set to open in 2027, the fully automated distribution centre is described as a ‘next step’ in M&S Fashion, Home and Beauty’s transformation and will form part of M&S’ 24/7 logistics network.
The retailer said the investment is aimed at boosting capacity, improving its range and stock availability, and speeding up deliveries, allowing customers to order later in the day.
John Lyttle, M&S Managing Director for Fashion, Home and Beauty, said: “As we transform M&S Fashion, Home and Beauty, our ambition is to double online sales. To achieve this and serve our customers faster, more efficiently and with better availability, our 24/7 distribution network needs more capacity.
“We’ve always said that we’ll deliver our transformation with highly disciplined capital investment, always mindful of spending shareholder money wisely. This acquisition does just that, delivering tangible business benefits that move our transformation forward, at a much lower cost compared to a new build option.”
