Marks and Spencer has pledged to become the first big retailer in Britain to launch same-day and half-day delivery of clothing to customers, aiming to be faster than rivals such as Asos and Next. It’s understood the proposed service would be nationwide.
Products will be delivered via a ship from store model with in-store fulfilment growing over the last 18 months to now account for 10-15% of online orders. The company says it plans to use its store portfolio advantage to further improve services and its delivery proposition for customers.
M&S is also revamping its click and collect and returns processes. M&S has announced the rollout of a new self-service digital click and collect and returns facility to 78 stores by Christmas. The services are currently being trialled in 22 stores.
The new model will replace the store’s traditional manned collection desks with self-serve digital screens for customers to use. Customers check-in via the screen which then sends an alert to a nearby colleague on a Honeywell device they have. That states exactly where the customer’s parcel is, allowing the assistant to retrieve it for the customer faster.
M&S is also improving its returns processes with a new return’s portal available in the ‘my account’ section of M&S.com. Previously customers had to endure pain points such as visiting third-party courier websites, using a printer and finding paper summaries. The new process means such information is instantly available and said to reduce the time spent for customers preparing returns by 60%. M&S has also committed to offering 100% paperless deliveries.
“Customers are looking for quick and convenient solutions like the option to click & collect on their terms when they want – which is now the number one choice for orders on M&S.com,” said Steve Kemp, head of digital retail at M&S. “We’re building a seamless omnichannel network so that customers can shop however they choose with us, and with the rollout of new digital click & collect and returns we’re making it even faster.”
