Marks & Spencer will spend £340 million on a giant automated warehouse in Northamptonshire as it accelerates efforts to double the size of its food business.
The 1.3 million sq ft facility, to be built at Daventry’s international rail freight terminal, represents the retailer’s biggest supply chain investment in its history. It will create 2,000 jobs during construction and a further 1,000 permanent roles once fully operational in 2029.
Products moving through the warehouse will be handled by automated cranes and small robots, streamlining the flow of goods to stores across the Midlands and northern Home Counties. M&S said the move will improve product availability, cut costs and future-proof its logistics network.
Alex Freudmann, managing director of M&S Food, said: “We’re transforming M&S into a destination for the weekly shop and modernising our supply chain is central to that ambition. By using the latest, proven automation, we are future-proofing both our business and UK retail logistics.”
The warehouse, developed by real estate group Prologis with logistics partner TGW, will underpin chief executive Stuart Machin’s ambition to make M&S a serious rival to the major supermarkets. The company plans to expand its food hall estate from 324 to 420 stores over the next four years, with average sizes growing to 14,000 sq ft, up from 8,000 sq ft last year.
M&S food sales rose 8.7 per cent to £9 billion in its last financial year, but profits are expected to take a £300 million hit from April’s cyber-attack, which disrupted Ocado deliveries. Recent NielsenIQ data showed a recovery, with sales up 6.7 per cent year-on-year over the 12 weeks to 9 August.
The new Daventry hub comes alongside a 390,000 sq ft distribution centre in Avonmouth, Bristol, announced earlier this year.
Shares in M&S are down more than 8 per cent in 2025.
