This year, Checkout commemorates its 40th anniversary and with this in mind, every week, Retail Intelligence is going to ‘reel in the years’ and publish a story from our extensive archives. This feature from October 1996 discusses the potential growth for Marks & Spencer in Ireland.
Marks & Spencer, whose new £40 million Grafton Street store caused Christmas Eve-type traffic jams in Dublin when it opened last month, holds more than half of the UK chilled ready meals market.
While just 2% of consumers complete their main grocery shopping at M&S, around 32% buy ready meals from the chain, accounting for 51.9% of sales. M&S says that its top five sellers are Chicken Kiev, Lasagne, Chicken Tikka, Beef Stew & Dumplings, and Cannelloni.
With a £75 million expansion scheme planned over the next five years, and Quarryvale next in its sights, industry observers say that the Irish multiple most likely to suffer from this new opening is Superquinn in Lucan.
© 2015 - Checkout Magazine
