M&S Wine Watch Day 9

4 of the misleading '10%' signs still on Display in M&S Stirling.
Note the different wording and type-face.'Save 10%' and '10% off'

The story so far: When I pointed out the above signage was misleading at the M&S Glasgow store, the staff turned hostile. I wrote to Chairman Stuart Rose to complain. M&S's Director of Food said he agreed the ticket was misleading and they would 'immediately... remove and destroy' the above tickets from all stores. That was 10 days ago.

M&S has 600 stores. So there is a good chance some of these misleading signs may have been missed when they were 'immediately' removed. But what are the chances of my visiting the only store in the whole of the UK that still has 4 of them on display?

Let's also assume that that if this was a food safety recall (rather than just misleading the customers into buying lots of wine) that M&S would be less sloppy in implementing its 'immediate remove and destroy' policy.

Now let's look at why the 'Save 10%' sign I saw in Glasgow was misleading.

The Director of Food wrote; 'unfortunately it appears that in this instance the terms and conditions of the case discount were missed off when printed.'

Have another look at the signs I photographed in the Stirling Store on Sunday. Exhibit 1 and 2 appear to be from the same batch as I first saw. Exhibits 3 and 4 are each entirely different. They look as though they pre-date the version where the 'T&C of the case discount were missed off'. The word 'buy' is absent and 'off' replaces 'save'. Exhibit 4 also has a wine glass line drawing not shown on any of the other versions. But crucially none of these earlier versions carries any terms and conditions describing how the offer is applied.

The Director of Food continues 'I would like to personally reassure you that we have not intentionally tried to mislead anybody and that we go to great lengths to ensure this situation does not arise.'

It's going to be a bad week in the M&S promotions copy-checking department. This situation appears to have happened not once, not twice, but on three separate printings. Oh dear.

I was amazed to discover I am not the only UK consumer who has had a spot of bother recently trying to get a leading food retailer to honour it's advertised promotion. A contributor to the Flyertalk British Airways forum reports how his local Tesco tried to tell him an 800 clubcard points promotion had never existed on Champagne. When he removed the shelf ticket and said he would send it to head office as proof, staff had him surrounded by security and said police would be on the way and arrest him for theft. When he took a photograph of the label he was told photography isn't allowed.Why are high street retailers so reluctant to be held accountable? They are more than happy to follow customers around the store with CCTV and security guards.



M&S have now written to me to reassure me that surrounding unhappy customers with security guards isn't in the staff training manual. Apparently what should have happened was if staff are unable to give the correct information they should refer the query to Head Office and promise a response later. M&S say I remain a valued customer and do hope I will be happy shopping with them in future.

But, despite two separate requests M&S have remained completely silent on their policy towards customers taking photos of promotions and products in store. So I can at least assure readers there has been NO attempt to ban the above photos (unlike the first one)


So if you see the misleading 'Save 10%' sign still on display at your local store feel free to send me a photograph. Mr Dixon at M&S might appreciate a copy too. They're probably proof-reading the 'No Photography Allowed' signs now.

M&S Wine Watch Day 1

"As a result of your email we have immediately instructed all stores to remove and destroy the ticketand issued a revised version clearly stating our terms" John Dixon, Director of Food, M&S

Perhaps I'm misunderstanding M&S's use of the term 'immediately' now?

I went into M&S Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow this Saturday afternoon (the busiest trading day of the week). The wine tickets are still prominently on display.

But I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Afterall, last Saturday the management there could see no problem with their tickets.

Go on Mr Dixon, get Glasgow into line.

M&S Photo Ban - Update

The Photo M&S tried to ban.
As a result of this photo M&S says it has removed and destroyed all the misleading signs

The Story so far: M&S staff reacted with hostility when I queried the terms of their 'Save 10%' wine discount promotion. I believed the offer was misleading. None of the staff was able to explain how the discount worked.

If M&S staff didn't understand the offer how could they expect customers to?

In a satisfying blow to the M&S section manager who told me the Legal Department 'never get it wrong' M&S has "immediately instructed all stores to remove and destroy" the above sign.

See my previous post: The photo Marks & Spencer Tried to Ban.After writing about my experience I emailed the blog to Sir Stuart Rose, M&S Chairman and Chief Executive.

This afternoon M&S Director of Food, John Dixon emailed to offer his sincere apologies that 'the terms and conditions... were missed off when printed'.

As a result M&S has 'immediately instructed all stores to remove and destroy the promotional ticket'.

John Dixon sits on M&S Board, so I appreciate his personal response. He explains in detail how the case discount applies.

"In future we will ensure all ticketing for this type of deal clearly states that the discount is applicable to multiples of 6 bottles only."

However his email is strangely silent on M&S policy towards customers taking photos of products on mobile phones. Two store security guards intercepted me when I took this photo and asked me to delete it. I have requested that Mr Dixon clarify M&S policy and since he concedes a mistake was made with the ticketing, I have requested an apology for the hostility with which I was treated in store when I pointed out M&S' error.

The Photo Marks & Spencer tried to Ban

The photo Marks & Spencer tried to Ban

I just brought 8 bottles of wine from M&S Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow. The total was £36.56. Reading the above sign displayed on all the wine shelves in store you might expect a discount of £3.65. But not if you're working in the M&S Legal Department.

The discount given was just £2.79. I asked at customer services how the discount was calculated. The first 2 customer service assistants were unable to explain, so the section manager 'Kenny' was called.

Kenny was unable to arrive at the £2.79 discount either, even after re-entering all the prices into the till.

Finally he announced, 'The discount only applies to six bottles.'

'Which 6 bottles?' I asked Kenny. 'The cheapest 6 bottles - £25.92' He pointed at the receipt. I had bought 6 bottles of Australian Shiraz at £4.32 a bottle, total £25.92.

'So why is the discount £2.79 not £2.59?' I queried. You bought 2 more more expensive bottles, so it's giving you a bit extra for the others.

If it's giving a 'bit extra' then the discount applies to more than 6 bottles I pointed out.

At this point I said I would go back and check the signage on the display, as I had not understood the offer to apply to '6 bottles only'.

I came back and explained that the sign does not carry the exclusion 'discount applies to cheapest bottles'. To prove it, I had taken a photo of the sign on my phone. Now Kenny got a bit upset and said that I wasn't allowed to take photos in M&S and I would have to delete it.

Un-distracted by Kenny's peculiar reaction to my evidence, it was at this moment I realised how the 10% discount on 6 bottles works.

M&S take 6 bottles in decreasing order of cost and apply a 10% discount to the average price of these 6. The 10% discount only applies to multiples of 6.

I wrote down the calculation based on this realisation and the discount on the total of my 6 most expensive bottles came to £2.79. The discount shown on the receipt.

Fair enough you might say.

Except, 3 members of M&S customer services were unable to calculate the discount.

So is the offer misleading. Is it legal?

Kenny says the sign has been approved by the Legal Department. I point out that this doesn't necessarily make it legal, but I will write to Stuart Rose (The Chairman and Chief Executive) with my photo and query it.

Now Kenny gets upset again. You'll have to delete that photo I'm afraid.

I point to another assistant wearing a suit (Kenny isn't wearing a suit) and ask if he is the store manager? He isn't. By now, I see no point in continuing my discussion with Kenny when I can write to the Management.

As I walk back through the store I see rows and rows of the offending 'Save 10%' signs and decide to take another photo. No sooner than I have my phone out and I'm approached by 2 security guards and Kenny arrives. It's almost as if they've been waiting for me.

I ask to see the store manager. Kenny says he is the most senior manager in the store. We have another brief discussion, in which I explain that I made a perfectly reasonable query which has offended him. I finish by saying that M&S displays no signage forbidding the taking of photographs, so they cannot reasonably object.

The security man smugly replies they don't have any signs forbidding stealing either. (In fact on the main store doors M&S advises that it operates the Civil Recovery Scheme, which is broadly the same as warning 'no stealing').

I ask if I am being detained by the 2 security guards for taking a photo? They say I am not. I ask if I am free to leave the store? They agree I am. So I leave.

It seems to me an entirely disproportionate response to a perfectly simple customer query. Why antagonise a customer who has just spent £39.08?

I am sorry if Kenny felt embarrassed that neither he or any of his M&S colleagues were able to calculate how the store's 10% wine discount is applied. To my mind it proves the offer is misleading.

Any right thinking customer should be able to understand how the discount applies.
Or - any right thinking member of M&S customer service.

The difference between 10% discount on my 8 bottles and 10% on the most expensive 6 is 86p.

86p = A silly amount to drive away a loyal customer during the worst trading conditions for a decade.

Marks and Spencer bags itself a profits warning

Has M&S scored a disastrous own goal in its food department? From May it began to charge customers 5p for a carrier bag (10p for the Bag For Life pictured above). All the profits go to charity. So M&S doesn't benefit by a single penny, but judging from feedback on the Telegraph's website lots of shoppers have been turned away by the charge. Instead of stumping up for this unwanted 'green levy' they shop next door instead. 5p is a hell of a price to pay for such a huge loss in sales.

This morning Marks and Spencer issued a shock profits warning. The share price slumped 20% on the news - with shares trading around 260p - last year they were over 700p. Food sales are down 4.5% and the Head of Food, recruited just a year ago (from Waitrose) has eaten his last meal in the M&S canteen.

My mother says the M&S ready meals quality has gone down. The packs have got bigger, but the contents smaller. I hardly buy any food from M&S anymore - the prices are ludicrous.

The threat to the environment from plastic bags has, I suspect, been grossly exaggerated. Ealing council has recently begun to recycle residents' plastic waste. Since introducing the new measure Ealing has hit the 30% recycled waste target every month. I'm not surprised. I manage to fill a large bag with plastic every week - even though I actively avoid buying plastic packaged fruit and vegetables. I don't throw away plastic carriers either. On a recent trip to Norwich the local Council was dispensing free re-usable cotton bags at a large branch of Salisbury's. I've been using the same cotton bag ever since. I think M&S will soon be rethinking its own bag policy. After all if you buy socks or pants they give you a free bag, but not if you buy bread or milk.

The news is full of shock horror stories about rising food prices. Today I was doing my accounts and sorting receipts. Among them a Tesco till receipt for exactly a year ago. By coincidence I bought some of the same items in Tesco yesterday. I compared the receipts. A pint of milk is up - from 35p to 42p, and 500g of Tesco Greek Yogurt from 78p to 98p. A can of Heinz soup last year was 59p, this week its 69p - but the same offer applies this week as it did exactly a year ago - buy 4 x cans for £2. Weetabix also has the same special offer as a year ago - buy 2x24 packs for £2, but last year a single pack cost £1.54, this week its £1.78. A kilo of loose carrots in July 2007 was 67p in July 2008 they cost 87p. The good news - a single lime is still just 15p (every lime helps perhaps?) I think I'll keep a few more supermarket receipts on file for next year.

Saving till receipts is a surprisingly effective method of keeping track of your cash.