Finance
M&S' food sales growth slows again after cyberattack, says NielsenIQ
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 23, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Quick Summary
M&S food sales growth slowed to 4.3% due to April's cyberattack, impacting logistics and market share, reports NielsenIQ.
M&S' food sales growth slows again after cyberattack, says NielsenIQ
LONDON (Reuters) -British retailer Marks & Spencer's food business saw sales growth slow further to 4.3% year-on-year over the 12 weeks to July 12, reflecting the disruption that followed a cyberattack in April, industry data showed on Wednesday.
Researcher NielsenIQ said M&S' grocery sales growth slowed from 9.1% in last month's report and 10.8% in the one before that. Its market share did, however, hold steady at 3.6%.
As part of its management of the cyberattack, M&S stopped taking online clothing orders and also took other systems offline. That reduced food availability and also resulted in higher waste and logistics costs.
In May, M&S said the attack would cost it about 300 million pounds ($406 million) in lost operating profit.
The group resumed taking online orders for clothing lines on June 10 after a 46-day suspension following the attack, but it is yet to restart click and collect services.
Most of NielsenIQ's data broadly echoed the findings of rival researcher Worldpanel's report on Tuesday, with robust performances from market leader Tesco, number two player Sainsbury's, discounters Aldi and Lidl and online supermarket Ocado.
However, M&S is not fully included in Worldpanel's market share data set.
($1 = 0.7390 pounds)
(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Jan Harvey)
Key Takeaways
- •M&S food sales growth slowed to 4.3% year-on-year.
- •Cyberattack in April disrupted operations significantly.
- •M&S market share remains steady at 3.6%.
- •Online clothing orders resumed after 46-day suspension.
- •NielsenIQ data aligns with Worldpanel's findings.
Frequently Asked Questions about M&S' food sales growth slows again after cyberattack, says NielsenIQ
1What was the sales growth percentage for M&S food business?
M&S' food business saw sales growth slow to 4.3% year-on-year over the 12 weeks to July 12.
2How did the cyberattack affect M&S operations?
Following the cyberattack, M&S stopped taking online clothing orders and took other systems offline, which reduced food availability and increased waste.
3What financial impact did the cyberattack have on M&S?
M&S estimated that the cyberattack would cost it about 300 million pounds ($406 million) in lost operating profit.
4When did M&S resume online clothing orders?
M&S resumed taking online orders for clothing lines on June 10 after a 46-day suspension due to the cyberattack.
5How does M&S' market share compare to its competitors?
Despite the slowdown in sales growth, M&S' market share held steady at 3.6%, while competitors like Tesco and Sainsbury's showed robust performances.
