Influx

Marks and Spencer is one of Britain’s retail icons, but in recent years its fallen upon difficult times, finding it challenging to compete with its unique mix of private label fashion and food.

M&S, as it’s known in the UK, had been something of a stranger to advertising, using it, but not really believing it.

That changed a few years ago with the appointment of Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe/Y&R, who, despite some initial misfires, produced consistent advertising that turned around the fortunes of the company.

M&S’s new advertising was built around some core truths of the brand- especially its “Britishness”. It hired Sixties fashion icon, Twiggy, to help. Its food, that has always been considered something of a treat, was given a sexy and indulgent makeover by the advertising.

In October, this campaign won the Grand Prix at the IPA’s (Institute of Practioners in Advertising) Effectiveness Awards, something akin to the Effies in the US.

The advertising led an incredible revival in the fortunes of M&S, helping to generate a 34% increase in profit for 2006 over 2005.

Of greater significance is how financial analysts in the City of London responded. Normally shy of praising ad campaigns, especially those that spend in excess of $100 million, in this case, they point to advertising as the reason for M&S’s turnaround.

“While it is impossible to split out the impact of any one individual campaign on sales performance, the evidence collected by the company indicates that this was the most positive campaign the business has ever run..”

Citigroup

M&S now finds itself as the poster child for the advertising industry, which is interesting for two reasons:

1. No one in the industry liked the creative work

2. The media strategy was unfashionably traditional- using print, outdoor and TV and staying clear of the internet

It’s clear that uncovering some simple core truths about the brand, making them relevant and investing media dollars to support the advertising, were all M&S needed to do to generate reappraisal and a significant financial turnaround.

There are number of US retailers, who could use a little of M&S’s magic right now, but first they need to believe in the transformative power of advertising.