Secondary Research

Marks and Spencer

Marks and Spencer are a British retailing brand that was founded in 1894 by two business partners named Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer. It did, however, establish its headquarters in Manchester, where it opened its first warehouse in 1897. Because of its appealing marketing methods, Marks and Spencer was expanding its businesses throughout the country.Marks and Spencer were well-known for having a department where all products were one penny. There used to be a sign in that section that said, "Don't inquire the Price. It's only a penny." Because such deals were novel and appealing to clients, more people began to visit Marks and Spencer. Marks and Spencer have expanded its operations over the years to fulfil the needs of its clients. Currently, the retailing brand has over a thousand outlets in the United Kingdom alone, and 1,487 stores worldwide. Marks and Spencer takes considerable care in selecting the materials used to produce their clothing. Marks and Spencer sources them ethically from a variety of trusted vendors. Marks and Spencer's apparel is made entirely of cotton from more sustainable sources that are better for people and the environment, such as the Better Cotton Initiative, Fair-trade, organic, and recycled cotton.

Next

Next plc designs, manufactures, and sells clothing, home furnishings, and accessories through around 330 Next retail stores and the company's Next Directory mail order sales catalogue. Retail stores and catalogue sales are two complementary operations in the following businesses. The company had over 330 Next retail locations in England and Ireland at the start of 1999, with a total retail sales space of approximately 1.35 million square feet. Next only employs a limited percentage of organic cotton and hemp, as well as recyclable materials like recycled polyester and regenerated nylon. The majority of the materials it employs are either natural without certification, such as cotton or linen. (Panaprium blog Next 2023). NEXT gets products from over 41 nations that are created from a wide range of basic materials. As part of the Company's 2025 Responsible Sourcing Strategy, they are committed to responsible sourcing and building full transparency to trace raw materials back to source. The raw materials must be sourced in a way that respects people, animals, and the environment in their supply chain.

John Lewis

John Lewis & Partners is a high-end department store brand that operates throughout the United Kingdom. The brand offers general products as part of the employee-owned mutual organisation know as the John Lewis Partnership, the United Kingdom's largest co-opertive. From 1925 to 2022, the business has a policy of at least matching a lower price supplied by a national high street competitor, this pledge was known as the 'Never Knowingly Undersold Pledge'. The fact that John Lewis offers amazing value is undeniable, but it's also worth noting that their quality hasn't suffered: many of their pieces are manufactured from organic cotton and include the workmanship that John Lewis is known for. Even fashion director Verity, who may be lured by the whims of the season's catwalk trends, advises: 'Buy well-made, good-quality, well-fitting clothes that you know you will wear a lot - then repeat buy those pieces in different colours or styles.'