Mutichannel sales increased during quarter three at Marks & Spencer.
Retail giant Marks & Spencer (M&S) has posted encouraging mobile-based sales figures for the third quarter of 2012.
The company revealed transactions performed through mobile devices witnessed a 90 per cent increase compared against the same three-month period in 2011.
Such positive movement came despite the brand seeing its overall sales dip by 1.8 per cent during the penultimate quarter of the year.
Indeed, M&S’s multi-channel sales leapt by 10.8 per cent during the period – and Marc Bolland, chief executive of the brand, said the movement comes at a time when the group is attempting to transform from a traditional UK retailer to an international multi-channel business.
Mr Bolland explained M&S is progressing well with this plan at present, with a new free next-day store collection introduced as part of efforts to improve the service enjoyed by its customers.
M&S noted its mobile marketing efforts look set to continue improving over the coming years, with a new e-commerce distribution centre to be launched in April 2013, followed by a new web platform in Spring 2014.
“We are pleased with our multi-channel and international performance. I’d like to thank all of our colleagues for their exceptional hard work and commitment over the busy Christmas period,” Mr Bolland added.
John Oswald, business design lead at design consultancy Fjord, said the findings illustrate a clear merging between online and offline retail practices, which is creating a ‘revolution in retail’.
Mr Oswald stated: “The trick will be to continue to build on this and not get blown off course by continued analyst pressure about general merchandise sales.”
He pointed out successes are coming from online and offline platforms being blended, as opposed to online efforts alone, claiming companies therefore need to consider the overall experiences they wish to provide for their customers.
This strategy should deliver value to real people and compliment their brand promises, the industry expert went on to add.
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