Latest news with #Marks & Spencer
Daily Mail
7 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Marks & Spencer advert banned over 'irresponsible' image of 'unhealthily thin' model
Marks & Spencer has been banned from using an 'irresponsible' image of a model who looked 'unhealthily thin'. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) took issue with an image on its app, which showed a model in a white top and trousers. It said her collarbones were 'very prominent' and she wore 'large pointed shoes which emphasised the slenderness of her legs'. And it said the camera angle, tilted down, 'further highlighted her small frame'. M&S defended the image but has stopped using it and apologised for any offence caused. A spokesman added: 'Our womenswear sizing ranges from size 8 to 24 and we always want to reflect that in our advertising. 'The product images on our website feature models of varying sizes so we can appeal to all our customers.' The ASA did not ban three more ads, which were reported, as they 'did not display any protruding bones'.
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
M&S advert banned for featuring model who looked ‘unhealthily thin'
An advert by high street retailer Marks & Spencer has been banned for featuring an 'irresponsible' image of a model who appeared 'unhealthily thin'. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said the model's pose, choice of clothing and the camera angle which seemed to tilt downwards all contributed to the impression she was too thin. The picture, which appeared on the M&S app, featured a model wearing slim-fit black trousers and a white off-the-shoulder top, where some of her upper torso can be seen. She faced the camera with one hand in her pocket and the other holding a bag. The advertising watchdog described the model's collarbones as 'very prominent'. It added that the model wore 'large pointed shoes which emphasised the slenderness of her legs' and: 'In part due to the camera angle which appeared tilted downwards, the model's head appeared out of proportion with the rest of her body and further highlighted her small frame.' M&S argued in its submission to the ASA that its 'inclusive women's wear clothing' represented sizes eight to 24. However, it acknowledged that the models in the ads were size eight, and therefore at the lower end of its sizing range. The retailer said it 'took concerns about the depiction of body image in their ads very seriously' and added that 'all models were in good health', and that they 'complied with industry standards and best practices to avoid promoting unhealthy body images'. The ASA ruled that the advert must not appear again in its current form and M&S must ensure all its images 'did not portray models as being unhealthily thin'. M&S confirmed that the images have been removed. The ASA said it also received complaints about three other adverts on the M&S app, website and in an email for the company, where two models wear a pink polka dot dress. In its investigation, it said the model's face 'did not look gaunt', adding that 'while thin, her arms and the leg visible in the shot, did not display any protruding bones'. 'The model appeared in proportion and we considered that she was not presented as unhealthily thin overall,' the ruling concluded. The other images in the ad, which featured another model, also 'showed the model in proportion. We also considered that the model did not appear unhealthily thin in those shots.' The ruling comes amid concerns that the fashion industry is reversing progress made in the body positivity movement in the 2010s due to a recent trend towards skinnier models. Earlier this year, the ASA banned a Next advert for featuring what it deemed an 'unhealthily thin' model in digitally altered clothing. In 2023, it banned Warehouse from using an image of a model in an oversized biker jacket, saying the model's pronounced collar bone, hip bones and torso gave the appearance of her being 'very thin', which made the ad 'irresponsible'. M&S has been contacted for comment.
Times
18-07-2025
- Business
- Times
Profitability is overrated, says Ocado boss Tim Steiner
The City is wrong to 'obsess' over short-term profitability, as tech companies burn cash in pursuit of scale, the boss of Ocado Group has said. The online supermarket operator, which has been branded a 'jam tomorrow' stock for its years of losses, has long been criticised for achieving a full-year pre-tax profit only once in its 25-year history. Tim Steiner, co-founder and chief executive of the technology and grocery provider best known for its partnership with Marks & Spencer, said the market should take a longer view. 'Our shareholders should only have invested if they believe that in the long term we're going to be a profitable business,' he said. 'It's right to have a focus but it can sometimes be wrong to overly obsess about it in the short term and not consider the long term.' Ocado Group, which includes technology and logistics divisions, has had a turbulent time. Founded in 2000 by three former Goldman Sachs executives, its value has plunged from £22 billion during the pandemic to £2 billion, pushing it out of the FTSE 100 last year. The dramatic fall from grace has attracted plenty of criticism from analysts and rivals. Philip Dorgan, then an analyst at the broker Ambrian Partners, once quipped that 'Ocado begins with an 'o', ends with an 'o' and is worth zero,' while Sir Terry Leahy, the former Tesco boss, dismissed it as little more than a 'charity', given its appetite for big losses. • 'Jam tomorrow' Ocado struggles to spread the word 'I'm sure at times some of it is warranted and at times some of it may not be,' Steiner admitted. 'I don't spend too much time, to be honest, focused on it because I'd have probably gone mad.' He added that he tries not to dwell on market sentiment: 'I've just got to keep going. It will become a great business. And hopefully one day, you know, all will realise [that].' He believes part of the problem is perception. Despite years spent investing in automation, robotics and software, Steiner said the market still sees Ocado primarily as a grocer rather than a tech company. 'I think why people still question us is because we launched a very large new business in the last seven-odd years. It means we have spent a lot of capital on creating the IP and the technology.' It's a strategy that mirrors some of Silicon Valley's biggest names. Amazon didn't turn a profit for almost a decade. The FTSE 250 company said on Thursday that turning cashflow positive by 2027 was now its 'core priority'. Steiner said full-year profitability could come 'shortly thereafter or around the same time', depending on the scale and timing of future investments. That's a slight shift from previous guidance, which had last year forecast a move into the black within five to six years, by 2023. • Ocado changed the food business. But will it ever make money? Not everyone is impressed. Clive Black of Shore Capital, a long-time critic of the business, questioned the market reaction. 'We are not sure we should be putting up the bunting for the firm to be full-year cash positive in 2027 for the first time after [25] years of trading,' he said. 'Such stuff is far from premium equity matter.' Shares in Ocado closed up 43½p, or 18.5 per cent, at 279p as the company hailed 'strong' trading over the past half-year, with sales boosted by growth in its technology arm and stronger performance at its Marks & Spencer venture. Still, the stock remains down about 25 per cent over the past 12 months, with investors unnerved by a slowdown in Higher prices and an increase in customer orders helped Ocado Group to offset a drop in the number of items per shop at its retail joint venture with Marks & Spencer in the first half of the year. Ocado Retail reported a 16.3 per cent rise in revenue to £1.5 billion in the six months to June 24, thanks to a rise in order numbers, active customers and improved frequency of purchase. Although the average number of items per basket declined, the average basket value increased by 0.7 per cent to £124.19. There was a 1.4 per cent rise in the average selling price, which Ocado noted was still below grocery inflation of 3.1 per cent. The performance, driven by improved marketing efforts and a broader range of M&S products, helped to narrow Ocado Retail's operating loss from £25.7 million to £17.1 million. Ocado Group posted a pre-tax profit of £611.8 million for the half-year, rebounding from a £153.3 million loss a year earlier, in part because of a £750 million accounting boost from its M&S partnership. The joint venture between Ocado and Marks & Spencer launched in September 2020, replacing Waitrose as the grocery partner on Ocado's online platform. The partnership, formed in 2019, boomed during the pandemic but suffered a 'challenging year' in 2022 when the retail arm sank £4 million into the red. Customers put fewer items in their baskets and used more discount vouchers during the cost of living crisis. Ocado Group dived to a £500 million loss that year. Performance has improved thanks to a 'reset' of Ocado Retail focusing on improving the customer experience, marketing and product availability. Investors reacted positively as Ocado Group hailed 'strong' trading over the past half year as sales jumped on the back of progress in its technology arm and it reported rising demand from UK shoppers. The London-listed company revealed that group revenues increased by 13.2 per cent to £674 million for the six months to June 1, compared with the same period a year earlier. It noted 14.9 per cent growth in its technology business as it benefited from further expansion and investment. Revenue at the company's third-party logistics business rose by 12.1 per cent, largely driven by a rise in inflation. Steiner said sentiment had improved and supermarkets were not so reluctant to invest in technology and automation, despite geopolitical uncertainty in the UK and in the US. Steiner recently stepped in as interim chief of Ocado Solutions, which licenses the group's warehouse automation to global supermarkets, after a two-year struggle to secure a permanent replacement for the division's former boss. He said the reason was to rebuild relations with clients after many paused or reduced expansion plans: 'To get closer to our clients and potential clients and actually get the team's client relationship, the revenue generation side, and the product development all working closer together.' Ocado Solutions is seen by investors as a promising growth engine, thanks to its potential to offer warehouse automation and software to major grocery players around the world. However, the division has hit headwinds: it is grappling with a pause at Kroger in the US, a halt at Sobeys in Canada and a scale-back by Morrisons.
Bloomberg
17-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ocado Pretax Profit Jumps on Valuation of M&S Joint Venture
Ocado Group Plc posted a rare pretax profit helped by the valuation of its grocery delivery joint venture with Marks & Spencer Group Plc. The company reported a statutory profit of £612 million ($820 million) in the first half of the year, compared with a loss of £153 million in the same period a year ago. That includes an accounting boost of £783 million from the Ocado Retail venture with M&S, which took over reporting responsibility this year.
CNA
17-07-2025
- Business
- CNA
Britain's Ocado says priority is to turn cash flow positive in 2025/26
LONDON :Ocado, the British online supermarket and technology group, said its priority was to generate cash, rather than consume it, in its next financial year, as it reported a 76.5 per cent rise in underlying earnings in its first half. The group runs an online supermarket through a joint venture with Marks & Spencer, though its value is mainly driven by the sale of its cutting-edge robotic warehouse technology to retailers around the world. It said on Thursday its core priority was to turn cash flow positive during its 2025/26 year - which starts in December - by reducing its costs, and be full year cash positive in the following year. Shares in Ocado have fallen 35 per cent over the last year, reflecting market anxiety at the pace of new site openings for its existing grocery retail partners and a lack of technology deals with new partners. The group said it made adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), its preferred measure, of 91.8 million pounds ($122.9 million) in the first half of its 2024/25 year, up from 52.0 million in the previous corresponding period. Revenue rose 13.2 per cent to 674 million pounds. Ocado said its expectations for the full year were unchanged. ($1 = 0.7468 pounds)
