在二十世纪 玛莎超市是英国最大的零售商，在英国有三百多家门市。并且它是一个跨国的零售商，在34个国家都有他们的商店，他们主要销售衣服 鞋帽 礼品 居家用品等等，许多名牌的商品都在他们家的商店里销售。同时，他们也开始发展金融和服务部门，个人贷款，保险 储蓄等业务。很显然，他们做的非常成功，在这个行业里，是一个先例，是别人学习的榜样，然而，他们为什么能成功，成功的因素是什么？
The Basis of Marks and Spencer’s Competitive Advantages
And Evaluation of Change Initiatives
1. Introduction
For much of the 20th century Marks and Spencer is the largest retailer in the United Kingdom, with nearly 300 stores in its home market. What is more, it is also an international retailer with 718 locations across 34 countries. The stores sell clothing, footwear, gifts, home furnishings, and food, with many of these items sold under Marks Spencer's private-label ST Michael brand. Meanwhile, the fast-growing Marks and Spencer Financial Services unit offers its customers credit cards, personal loans, life insurance, and savings, investment and pension plans. Apparently, Marks and Spencer achieved great success. It was the leading retailer, was extremely well-run, and was considered an icon of good business practices. Then, what was its basis of competitive advantage both past and present?
However, by the late 1990s there were signs of decline, Marks and Spencer needed a serious change of direction. Many changes to senior management began the slow process of moving the company into new directions through the early year of the 21st century. Although there have been downfalls for the hardy retailing perennial over the years largely due to economic crises, they have managed to surmount all the stumbling blocks through an resilience that their competitors view as unnerving. How to evaluate change initiatives mounted in recent year?
Therefore, it is necessary to explore issues concerned with target consumers, price and quality of products, organizational culture, change initiatives and strategic leadership of Marks and Spencer. Below is the analysis of these problems.
2. The Basis of Marks and Spencer’s Competitive Advantage both Past and Present
2.1 Competitive Advantage of Marks and Spencer
Marks and Spencer is one of Britain’s largest high profile retailers selling variety of goods and services such as clothes, food, furniture and loan services. Moreover, it was one of the world’s great retailers, enjoying legendary and iconic status, being often held up as one of the best managed and admired businesses in the world (Mellahi, Jackson and Sparks, 2002, p.15). Being in retailing for over a hundred years, Marks and Spencer’s competitive advantages over their counterparts in the business are:
•Reputation that they have established with their customers, employees and suppliers.
•Their customers have long associated the company with total dependability and value for money.
