M&S shares rise as online orders resume after £300m cyberattack
M&S shares climbed on Tuesday (10 June) after the retailer reopened its website more than six weeks following a cyberattack that forced a near two-month halt to online sales.
M&S shares climbed on Tuesday (10 June) after the retailer reopened its website more than six weeks following a cyberattack that forced a near two-month halt to online sales.
The group has resumed home delivery of a selection of its best-selling fashion ranges across England, Scotland, and Wales, with plans to add more fashion, home, and beauty products daily.
Click and collect, next-day delivery, nominated-day delivery, and international shipping services are also expected to restart in the coming weeks.
M&S MD of clothing, home and beauty John Lyttle said more products will be added “every day,” while deliveries to Northern Ireland and Click and Collect services are expected to resume “in the coming weeks.”
The cyberattack in April, which saw criminals steal customers’ personal data, has hit M&S with an estimated loss of £25m a week in online clothing and homewares sales.
The overall cost of the disruption could reach £300m in group operating profit, though the retailer expects to mitigate roughly half through cost management, insurance, and other trading actions.
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The breach, caused by “human error” after hackers accessed M&S’s IT systems via a third party, initially affected contactless payments and stock availability, although all 565 stores remained open and trading throughout.
Chief executive Stuart Machin has said the retailer’s cyber woes may not be fully resolved until July.
Despite the disruption to its fashion, home, and beauty operations, M&S has seen progress in its food business, where sales growth in the first month after the cyberattack was almost double the wider market rate.
Hargreaves Lansdown head of money and markets Susannah Streeter, said: “There’s a palpable sigh of relief among shareholders now that some online orders at Marks and Spencer have resumed. There will be high hopes that M&S can put this unfortunate chapter behind it, and ensure its products are front and centre of shopper minds online.
“It will now be able to sell summer styles online ahead of the big holiday rush, which should help it claw back some lost sales.”
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