By Alex Freudmann, Managing Director, M&S Food

It’s been over a century since M&S opened its first Scottish store in Dundee, all the way back in 1918. Our Glasgow store on Argyle Street came just a year later, and since then, we’ve grown to have over 100 stores across Scotland.

Today, M&S Food has a 5.6% market share in Scotland, higher than in any other part of the UK, where the average is 4.0%. The journey since our first store opening has been a rewarding one, and Scotland is firmly at the heart of our story. We started working with our first Scottish supplier – Marshall’s Herrings - in 1930, and today, more than 4,000 Scottish farms, sea farms and fishing vessels are in our supply chain. Around 60% of the protein we sell – including livestock and farmed fish - now comes from Scotland.

Our Best Ever Burgers and Caledonian Gold Salmon – both personal favourites of mine - come from Scottish partners. Not forgetting our delicious range of teacakes, produced by Lees of Scotland, the M&S Collection Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky, from Ian Macleod Distillers, and the sweet and tangy Blood Orange Marmalade supplied by Mackays. Sourcing and making amazing and great tasting food is central to M&S and our long-term supplier relationships are a key strategic element of how we maintain our market leading perception for quality. M&S Food is renowned for quality and innovation, and Scottish suppliers have undoubtedly played a large role in this.  

As well as offering the best product from across Scotland, it’s also imperative our Scottish customers have access to modern, inspiring and sustainable retail environments. That’s why we’re investing in our stores, so we can have the right stores, in the right places, with the right space. Just last year, we announced that M&S is investing £30 million in Scottish stores, with a plan to deliver five new and expanded stores in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Largs, and Linlithgow.

This investment supports over 6,500 jobs across Scotland, as we reshape our stores for growth. This is part of our long-term goal to create modern and inspiring M&S stores across Scotland, supporting local economies and creating jobs for the future, which goes hand-in-hand with our commitment to Scottish sourcing. M&S has come a long way in Scotland since 1918, but our focus has always remained the same: great products, meaningful partnerships and a commitment to the communities we serve.

Whether it’s supporting local food banks through Neighbourly, supporting over 800 colleagues in our Gist logistics business or opening new Foodhalls in key areas of the country, I am certainly proud of the impact we are making in Scotland.

This week, I had the privilege of hosting a Scottish Parliamentary event in Edinburgh – a fantastic event that shone a spotlight on our deep-rooted commitment to Scotland’s rural economy. It was more than just an evening of celebration; it was a powerful reminder of how far we’ve come in our partnerships with Scottish suppliers, and an exciting glimpse into the opportunities that lie ahead for M&S in Scotland. At the event, we reflected on how M&S supports Scottish suppliers and acts as a partner who provides certainty, security, and the right environment to help them invest and thrive.

In the words of one of our event speakers and longstanding Scottish suppliers, Rachael Duncan of Duncan Farms: “For us, supplying M&S is more than just delivering Scottish eggs. It’s a partnership built on mutual values and goals to continually improve on quality, sustainability and nutrition, delivering the best for the Scottish consumer.”

The evening not only highlighted the incredible work our farmers are doing, but that many are finding it harder than ever to remain sustainable and profitable. We all agreed that we need to work together to back British farming with the right support, smart investment, technology, and policies to secure its future.

Next week, M&S will return to the Royal Highland Show to continue demonstrating our support for Scottish farming, sustainability and quality food.