Marks & Spencer boss warns staff on new Ocado automated startup launching in 100 days
M&S boss warns staff on Ocado delivery deal: 'We need to get it right for customers from launch'
“If there are bumps in the road, we want to make sure they’re fixed with pace.”
The executive at the centre of Marks & Spencer's biggest strategic gamble for decades has written to staff to warn that all eyes will be on the retailer's new venture with Ocado which launches in 100 days.
M&S food managing director Stuart Machin – who is understood to have a countdown clock on his office wall – said his team is maintaining a 'laser' focus on September 1 when Ocado ditches Waitrose, its partner of 18 years.
He pointed out that M&S is bracing itself for scrutiny from shoppers, both new and existing, and he stressed to staff: 'We need to get it right for customers from launch.
M&S's new venture with Ocado which launches in 100 days
The huge task has been made even more challenging since the Covid-19 crisis made online demand rocket.
Six thousand new lines have been primed – 2,000 more than Waitrose supplied through Ocado – and M&S hopes to reflect the online experience in larger stores where 75 per cent of the new ranges will be available.
