Marks and Sparks

Elegran Very good!!

I consider it very offhand that their reply to my email implied that only communications from individual customers would be taken into consideration!

Squiffy Suitable response to the M&S Executive Team's reply. Feel free to copy it and send to them -

"Thank you for your response to my suggestion that you read and consider the opinions of Gransnet members on the clothes you stock.

I have noted it for future reference and sent a copy to the forum site owners so that they can see how little you value the views of what used to be your bedrock consumer base. As you would have seen had you looked, many of them were regular customers until the colours, styles and quality changed. There ARE good things, but it takes a lot of searching through multiple groupings of racks of different ranges to find them.

The over-fifties spent nearly £7 billion on clothes in 2013, (see fashionunited.uk/v1/fashion/women-over-50s-spending-most-on-fashion/2014022113134 ), These women are unlikely to bother giving you direct feedback. They just quietly take their business elsewhere and talk about their disappointment amongst themselves. Places like this forum, where people chat informally about shopping for clothes are as valuable a source of information about reactions to your stock as letters from customers.

In addition to the chat forum, I am sure Gransnet management staff are also interested in more formal co-operation with retail organisations to gather feedback from their thousands of members on M&S "

I agree re M and S, I use Next mostly for jeans etc and tops as well as FatFace. No Debenhams where I live but it’s going to fold anyway from what I hear.

Food! Now that’s a different matter Shizam.

My nearest shop is a M&S Food, just a perfect half mile walk up the hill and through the old West Gate. Can combine a little work out with a pleasant shop.

I hadn’t been to marks for ages. On impulse. Did Xmas food shop there. It was rather good. Range of food looks better than before, I think. Not somewhere I’d shop often for food though.
Went into clothes bit several months ago. Needs someone with a clear mind to define what they are doing. Bring back George!

Me too Glammagran!

I find their per una Roma cut jeans a perfect fit for me however

I shop at the Bath store too. My main complaint is with their Autograph bras. Different years I’ve purchased 3 bras where the straps just unravelled and fell apart after a couple of washes. Got a refund each time. But what made me fume is I’m then left with matching pants which then match nothing else.(I’ve a thing for matching undies). Also I bought online a Per Una parka to replace my (brilliant) 5 year old one and quality is not a patch on my old one. Quality has really gone downhill, even with some food items.

I've just read lemongroves' comment. I, too, got in touch with a complaint about them and suggested they should read the comments on GN, but I don't think that they bothered.Pity they can't be bothered to see what their (former) customers think.

Knickers!! Like Liz46, I miss BHS, the knickers I bought from M&S have lots of little holes in them, they are very poor quality.

This is a popular topic and will no doubt run and run.
However in their defence may I point out that while I agree they are spreading themselves too thinly and have perhaps lost direction, nevertheless would you honestly expect to like everything on offer?
I have instanced two items which are fantastic value and very stylish and there may well be others. Fair enough, their trousers are a disaster although the cord straight jeans in black, blue and grey have seen me through the last 4 months
If I am being honest House if Fraser never has anything which appeals to me and I find Debenhams like a poor relation of C&A !

I now prefer to go to separate shops/labels like Joules, Uniqlo and Sahara etc or look online.
M&S used to be all things to all women and I can understand everybody’s disappointment, but it is not all bad, you just have to be more selective.

Only buy food there occasionally now, clothes are sh**e! Shame, I used to be a really loyal customer- they won’t learn ‘til they go under!

Well, here is the reply that I have just received from the Executive Team,

“Thank you for your email.
I have noted your comments about this forum on our system for our future consideration.
Of course should any customer wish to engage with us directly and provide suggestions or comments about our business, we would always appreciate their time and gratefully receive their feedback.
Thanks again, I hope you enjoy the rest of your week.
Kind regards”

That pretty well sums up their attitude, it seems. I’ve obviously been filed in their archives - aka the bin!!

I do hope that somebody high up in M&S reads this thread.
Or their Mother/Grandmother.

Me too Hooty do you think there is a support group we could join that would cure us of this?

I bought a couple of decent tops for DS last week. As the sale was on I thought I'd have a look round for a new coat. Fat chance! Horrible colours, horrible fabrics and horrible styles. I tried on a trench coat from the curve range. It made me look like a huge sausage.

Recently saw in Marks (one in shop, one on line) two real horrors. One was a mid-calf length quite flared yellow leather skirt with elastic waist. Had some favourable reviews though, so what do I know? The other was a tartan dress, asymmetrical in the extreme, displayed very unattractively by being just shoved on the end of a rail, with blouses on it. Not in the sale.

I wasn't happy when I paid £40 for a jumper for it to shrink on the first wash. Then I had to queue up and be questioned about my ability to wash an item according to the instructions. They sent it off for testing, agreed the jumper was faulty instead of me, and sent me a refund for £25! Of course now I won't take the risk with their jumpers. And I get so annoyed with the use by dates of food. I don't go in every day, so why is there an assumption I'm going to eat a cake on the day I buy it?

However I did buy some lovely bedding a year ago, a beautiful design with embroidered birds that washes up lovely. And great extra deep fitted sheets.

If they focussed on good quality but stylish 'basics' it might help!

Our local M and S shops closed but we will soon have a food store instead and that’s all I buy. If I get tokens I spend them on food. My sister sent us some M and S anniversary flowers last week, delivered by Yodel, no note, no ring on doorbell, discovered by accident on doorstep in full view. Box had been tipped over so little water in wrapper, flowers dead four days later. Sister is to receive £10 voucher!

They have really lost their way these past few years in the clothing department. Too much polyester and hardly any natural fibres. Lots of the blouses/tops are completely shapeless - have they never heard of darts!?? I agree that the trouser shape has altered, they are now like jodpurs. Wish they would stock more really good quality staples: navy wool (or wool mix) blazers; trousers in proper 'suiting' material (they manage it in the men's department!); fine merino wool jumpers in lots of colours with v neck (not too low!) and 3/4 sleeves; dark indigo or black jeans that don't lose their colour after a couple of washes; more leather shoes, etc. I would willingly pay more for good material, we don't always want clothes that only last or are fashionable for 1 or 2 seasons (we can get those from H &M, New Look, Primark etc).

Recently the Sunday Telegraph's Stella magazine suggested Uniglo instead of M&S. Haven't tried it yet.

I found that MawBroon's jumper was a bit itchy so didn't buy one but I loved the style and colours.

I bought a kitchen table and chairs before Christmas and organised named day delivery.
I came home to find it had been delivered a day early and dumped in my back garden in torrential rain.

M&S customer service were absolutely useless.

They closed our local Marks about 2 years ago - it’s funny, once it disappeared I really missed it although I didn’t rate it very highly when it was there!
They’ve now opened a new store about 3 miles away - it’s totally soulless made worse by the poor quality clothes and the staff who seem unhappy/ disinterested.
The only things I buy these days are the Heatgen thermal tops which are lovely and some of the food.

I ordered a mattress which failed to arrive. When I contacted the online 'help' they told me they would check and get back to me .... then refunded it overnight! I have a pretty clear idea how much they value my custom. Now have a ' loyalty card' which feels utterly worthless. If it weren't for a few favourite foods I would cut the card up and post it to their CEO!