Finance

M&S' food sales growth slows after cyberattack, says NielsenIQ

Published by Global Banking & Finance Review

Posted on June 25, 2025

2 min read

· Last updated: January 23, 2026

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M&S' food sales growth slows after cyberattack, says NielsenIQ
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LONDON (Reuters) -British retailer Marks & Spencer's food business saw sales growth slow to 9.1% over the 12 weeks to June 14 year-on-year, reflecting the disruption that followed a cyberattack in

Marks & Spencer's Food Sales Growth Declines Post-Cyberattack

LONDON (Reuters) -British retailer Marks & Spencer's food business saw sales growth slow to 9.1% over the 12 weeks to June 14 year-on-year, reflecting the disruption that followed a cyberattack in April, industry data showed on Wednesday.

Researcher NielsenIQ said M&S' food sales growth slowed from 10.8% in last month's report and 14.7% in the one before that.

Though M&S' market share ticked up 10 basis points on the year to 3.7%, it was down from the 3.8% reading in last month's report.

As part of its management of the cyberattack, M&S stopped taking online clothing orders and also took other systems offline. That reduced food availability and also resulted in higher waste and logistics costs.

Last month, M&S said the attack would cost it about 300 million pounds ($409 million) in lost operating profit.

The group resumed taking online orders for clothing lines on June 10 after a 46-day suspension following the attack.

Most of NielsenIQ's data broadly echoed the findings of rival researcher Kantar's report on Tuesday, with robust performances from market leader Tesco, number two player Sainsbury's and online supermarket Ocado.

However, M&S is not fully included in Kantar's market share data set.

($1 = 0.7341 pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; editing by Barbara Lewis)

Key Takeaways

  • M&S food sales growth slowed to 9.1% post-cyberattack.
  • Market share decreased to 3.7% from 3.8%.
  • Cyberattack led to higher waste and logistics costs.
  • Online clothing orders were suspended for 46 days.
  • M&S faces a £300 million loss in operating profit.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the percentage growth of M&S food sales?
M&S' food sales growth slowed to 9.1% over the 12 weeks to June 14 year-on-year.
How did the cyberattack affect M&S operations?
Following the cyberattack, M&S stopped taking online clothing orders and took other systems offline, which reduced food availability and increased waste.
What financial impact did the cyberattack have on M&S?
M&S estimated that the cyberattack would cost it about 300 million pounds ($409 million) in lost operating profit.
How did M&S' market share change?
M&S' market share increased by 10 basis points to 3.7%, but it was down from 3.8% in the previous month's report.
When did M&S resume online clothing orders?
M&S resumed taking online orders for clothing lines on June 10 after a 46-day suspension due to the cyberattack.

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