M&S has acquired Asos’ former Lichfield distribution centre for £67.5m to accelerate the ongoing transformation of its fashion, beauty and home business.
The 437,000 sq ft fully automated fashion warehouse in Staffordshire will open in 2027 and employ 600 people, the retailer said.
The new hub will add capacity and help process orders quickly, which M&S says will support its long-term ambition of doubling the size of its online fashion business.
M&S managing director for fashion, home and beauty, John Lyttle, said: “As we transform M&S fashion, home and beauty, our ambition is to double online sales.
“To achieve this and serve our customers faster, more efficiently and with better availability, our 24/7 distribution network needs more capacity.
“We’ve always said that we’ll deliver our transformation with highly disciplined capital investment, always mindful of spending shareholder money wisely.
“This acquisition does just that, delivering tangible business benefits that move our transformation forward, at a much lower cost compared to a new build option.”
Asos chief executive Jose Antonio Ramos added: “The disposal of our Lichfield fulfilment centre represents a further step in strengthening Asos’ balance sheet and improving our capital efficiency.
“This transaction enables us to unlock value from one of our non-core assets while reducing our ongoing cost base, consistent with the actions we have taken over the past three years to simplify the business and enhance financial resilience.
“Asos is a well-invested business, and we have significant capacity to support future growth. We will continue to maintain a disciplined approach to capital allocation as we execute our strategy.”
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