Retailers face continual scrutiny on the efficiency and safety of their supply chain, provenance of raw materials, and their approach to responsible sourcing in order to minimise reputational risks.
As one of the most trusted brands on the high street, we believe our role is to reassure our customers and key stakeholders that our products are safe and sourced with integrity. To do this, we must look beyond our operations to the wider supply chain, where the biggest impacts occur.
Our customers are also increasingly concerned about their health and want more information about the household products they come into contact with.
Commitments and targets
We are committed to protecting our brand integrity and maintaining customer trust by ensuring that our products are safe, legal, high quality and accurately reflect any claims or statements that are made.
We want to lead our sector in sustainable production and consumption, offering our customers the good value, high quality products and services that they expect from us while respecting our planetary boundaries and need for social equity. We recognise how important animal health is to sustainability and strive to uphold the highest welfare standards.
Approach
Our M&S high quality household products play an essential role in enhancing our customers’ daily lives. We offer everything from bathroom and kitchen products (e.g. wipes, scouring pads, kitchen brushes, aluminium foil, etc), soaps and handwashes, bleaches and detergents, through to fragrances and scented candles, toilet tissue and refuse bags.
Nothing is more important to us than product safety. Our
Technical Terms of Trade set out our minimum requirements for suppliers of household products.
Our
Technical Terms of Trade are supported by specific policies and Codes of Practice (which set out our requirements in detail for a particular topic) and Guidelines (which are advisory in nature). These can be found on Connect – our online Quality Management System – and should be read alongside our Terms of Trade. Find out more about our approach to
supplier management and
product standards.
Over the years we’ve achieved a number of significant successes including some industry firsts. For example, we were the first retailer in the household products category to be certified Cruelty Free by
Cruelty Free International. We were also the first retailer to have all our M&S chemical-based cleaning products confirmed as meeting the requirements of the
AISE Charter for Sustainable Cleaning.
Our approach to household products focuses on: