M&S expands international franchising

The retailer Marks and Spencer (M&S) has said it has started discussions with its franchise partner, Dubai-based Al-Futtaim, over the potential sale of its outlets in Hong Kong and Macau. The group currently has had a franchising deal with Al-Futtaim since 1998 and is looking to further the partnership by increasing their presence in China with a network of 27 outlets. The result of the deal would be that Al-Futtaim would become the sole franchisee for the retail group in Macau and Hong Kong. Al-Futtaim runs 43 outlets over the Middle East and a further 16 across Malaysia and Singapore.

Paul Friston, Marks and Spencer’s International director said: “Al-Futtaim is a key partner to M&S in Asia and the Middle East and we are both committed to putting the customer at the heart of everything we do.

“With significant scale and retail expertise in the region, we are looking forward to discussing the potential extension of our partnership to Hong Kong and Macau as we continue to grow and develop our business together.”

“In November we set out our plans to create a more sustainable, profitable and customer-centric international business for M&S by focusing on our established partnerships,”