M&S edges previous Waitrose in battle for center class customers to maintain 4% of the grocery market

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Marks & Spencer has edged ahead of Waitrose in the battle for middle class shoppers.

Industry figures seen by the Telegraph show that it held a 4 per cent of the grocery market in the four weeks to November 3 compared with 3.9 per cent for its rival.

It is the first time outside the Christmas season that M&S has been ahead of Waitrose – and the latest sign that the retailer has got its sparkle back.

M&S’s turnaround plan has been gathering pace under boss Stuart Machin, who previously led its food division.

Its share of the grocery market has increased from 3.76 per cent in the same period a year earlier. 

However, Waitrose, owned by the John Lewis Partnership, saw its share fall from just over 4 per cent last year.

After investing in larger food halls and launching new products, M&S is benefiting as more of Middle England does its weekly shop with it, rather than seeing shopping there as a ‘treat’.

The success of the revival has prompted M&S to increase its new store openings, with 70 to be added by 2028 including 50 standalone food outlets. 

It is also battling John Lewis’s department store business over clothing and home sales.

M&S is enjoying a fashion comeback, bringing in American-British actress Sienna Miller as the face of its clothes ranges to add glamour and transform its once dowdy reputation.