We live in strange times when every day seems to bring more ‘Oh no, now’ that is He has also gone south. The local pub, the cinema, the banks, the post office (not to mention the post office!). But there is one notable exception to the rule that things can only get worse: Marks & Spencer.
The country’s trusted supplier of all the basics and a little more has had what the young call a “brightening” and is now in a better place than anyone can remember. Especially when it comes to fashion. People are talking about M&S clothes and not just swimsuits and jumpers.
The company has accomplished a remarkable fashion feat. Since last fall’s excellent collection under new women’s fashion director Maddy Evans, with that memorable ad campaign fronted by Sienna Miller, it has earned a reputation for absorbing key trends and creating customer-friendly versions with a high quality standard at affordable prices.
And, most importantly, these are not just the safest and most accessible trends.
M&S Collection Dress £49.50 – Earrings £14 – Bag £55 – Shoes £45
Autograph Blazer £99 – Autograph Bandeau £45 – Autograph Shirt £49.50 – Autograph Jeans £65 – Earrings £12.50 – Shoes £49.50
Autograph Jacket £99 – Autograph Shirt £49.50 – Autograph Shorts £45 – Earrings £10 – Shoes £39.50
Goodmove long coat €59 Goodmove jacket €59 – Goodmove Top 25 – Goodmove shorts €29.50
M&S Collection Dress €45 – Earrings €14
M&S wants to be the brand that “every woman owns something”, which is why last season it produced silver pants (bait for fashionistas); that khaki quilted coat that became every woman’s favorite walking in the park, and why your standard jeans are suddenly worth trying, especially since they come in 25 different styles, all of them in short, regular, and long. Sales of Christmas clothing and denim in particular are behind the 56 per cent rise in profits reported at the end of last year, making M&S the UK’s largest women’s clothing retailer.
For a Jacket £49.50 – For a Shirt £45 – For a Short £35 – Earrings £10 – Belt £15
Autograph Dress £119 – Earrings £10 – Bag £45
M&S Collection Dress £49.50 – Sunglasses £15 – Earrings £16
And with its new Spring/Summer collection, presented today, it’s clear that the store is aiming even higher.
So what’s on offer for summer? The answer is some of the best tailoring you’ll see on the high street.
Confident that we turn to it for quality and value for money (we’ve got you covered), M&S has turned its attention to the smarter type of clothes worn for socializing and work and the 300,000 weddings (drink) that They are expected to be held in Great Britain. this summer.
Blazer M&S Collection £55 – Vest M&S Collection £35 – Trousers M&S Collection £39.50 – Sunglasses £15 – Earrings £14 – Bag £99
M&S Collection Swimsuit £29.50 – M&S Collection Pants £29.50 Necklace £30 – Bracelet £16 – Bracelet £16 – Bracelet £16 – Belt £25
Goodmove Padded Coat £59 – Goodmove Jacket £35 – Goodmove Vest £15 – Goodmove Leggings £27.50 – Bag £39.50
In the television campaign that will be launched next week you will see the main pieces: a short three-piece linen suit; Long dark denim urban shorts with a black one-shoulder top: a white cotton poplin sleeveless dress under a one-button black linen jacket with elegant silver pumps. These are fashionable and well-cut garments for a confident customer. (If you’re worried about the one-shoulder look, this being M&S, it’s totally bra-friendly.)
Still, my money is on the extra quality tailoring you get with the premium Autograph and M&S Collection labels. These jackets, trousers and skirts have finishes that almost meet Savile Row standards. Standout pieces for summer include a cobalt blue linen one-button suit jacket (£99) and matching wide-leg flat-front trousers (£39.50) and an icy pale pink linen trouser suit with a jacket long without buttons. (£55) and high waist pleated front trousers (£39.50), which I would love to wear to a wedding.
There’s also a matte satin double-breasted, silver-grey tuxedo-style jacket with shawl collar (£69) and, again, matching wide-leg trousers with darts that sit high on the waist to elongate the leg (£39.50), which is red carpet quality. (You would wear it with nothing underneath and with silver heels.) This is a great confection for less than half the price you’ll find elsewhere.
Per t-shirt £39.50 – Per t-shirt £45 – Per shorts £35
M&S Collection Swimsuit £32.50 – Earrings £10 – Bracelet £16 – Bracelet £16
For a Blazer £79 For a Dress £79 – Earrings £10 – Belt £25 – Shoes £69
M&S Collection Top £19.50 – M&S Collection Shorts £19.50 – Bag £19.50 – Sunglasses £15 – Earrings £14
If you’re looking for something smart but more everyday, then the oatmeal linen trench coat (£79) would enhance one of M&S’s khaki cargo skirts or those palazzo jeans. Or a beige utility shirt, discreetly dusted with sequins (£49.50) would be a great way to dress up a pair of navy or white trousers.
This collection is committed to “feminized” tailoring: shorts of all lengths; jackets from belted to short; increasingly wider pants, because that is the direction fashion is going. But this is M&S, so it caters to all for women and there are skirts (in two lengths, naturally, midi and maxi), including the best-selling, tried-and-true slip skirt now back in leopard print (£29.50). There’s also a short-sleeved, draped, leopard-print chiffon dress, which would look divine on my thirty-something niece.
Autograph Vest £99 – Autograph Skirt £79 – Earrings £12.50 – Ring £12.50 – Ring £8.50 – Shoes £49.50
Autograph Dress £119 – Earrings £10 – Bag £45 – Shoes £35
That is the mission of M&S. They lead the market in clients aged 35 to 55 and now they want to become of all first port of call, not just for vacations and linen shirts and sweaters, but for all summer events, high and low.
If you like tailoring you will love this new collection. And if you don’t… there are many more casual hits in the Per Una and Christmas collections.