Sir Stuart Rose has duly
earned his place in history. Marks & Spencer's £1
billion pre-tax profit is its best performance since the
days of Sir Richard Greenbury a decade ago.
Forget for a moment the fact that M&S reached the milestone
by only £7 million.
The achievement reflects the impressive turnaround in the
business over the past four years and makes M&S one
of the most profitable companies on the high street.
All has gone very much according to plan, apart from the
small matter of a looming recession. Until the credit crunch
came along, Sir Stuart was ready to leave in early 2009.
He could then have packed his bags and been hailed as the
man who saved one of Britain's best-loved institutions.
Instead, the hard work starts now.
Analysts fear that pre-tax profits at M&S could fall
by nearly £200 million this year as it battles cost
inflation of 7 per cent and the toughest trading conditions
since the early 1990s.
Sir Stuart not only has to steer M&S through nastier
economic times. He has to cope with the lingering shareholder
anger over his promotion to executive chairman, and he has
to help to find a successor.
For all his undoubted ability as a retailer, Sir Stuart
has his doubters in the City. He did his best to answer
the critics yesterday, insisting that M&S was right
to continue its share buyback programme and lower the opening
price points on its clothing.
Some worry that M&S is trying to be all things to all
people. Attempting to fight John Lewis for the hearts and
minds of Middle England while facing up to George at Asda
could prove tricky.
In spite of recent difficulties, Sir Stuart still has an
extraordinary reputation. We may now get to see how good
he really is. |
Select a Florist
