Stuart Machin, M&S’ chief executive, told shareholders at the retailer’s annual general meeting today (Tuesday) that he hopes operations will be running “fully” within four weeks.
On 22 April, online orders were cancelled and M&S was forced to pause contactless payments in UK stores following a ransomware attack.
The shopping giant contacted customers in May to confirm that while personal data was taken during the incident, no card details or access to payment options were stolen.
M&S has spent the past couple of months working to put systems back online following the attack. Currently, half of its online operations are back working, but not the click and collect services.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “At the company’s AGM, CEO Stuart Machin put the latest timeline on a recovery at four weeks. This should mean the retailer will hit August firing on all cylinders once again. Management have previously estimated that it could cost as much as £300m in lost sales and operational disruption, although it’s likely that this will be mitigated by insurance claims and cost efficiencies made elsewhere.
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“While services have been suspended the company is believed to have used the opportunity to speed up part of its digital transformation plan, as well as ensuring that its IT systems are robust enough to withstand a future attack.”
There will be high hopes that M&S can put the cyber attack and subsequent issues behind it. The early signs are that there is pent-up demand, particularly for its summer styles, with many of the popular products sold out online.
Its strong set of annual results showed the retailer was in a resilient position before the cyber attackers infiltrated systems.
Streeter said: “Sales growth in the fashion and home and beauty division reflected improved customer perceptions of value, quality, and style. Demand for M&S food remains robust, with increased volumes driving growth.
“So, with the underlying performance remaining solid, it bodes well for M&S ahead, but until everything’s back up and running, it’s likely to weigh on investor sentiment. Although shares have been in positive territory today, they remain around 13% lower than the level in mid-April, before the cyber attack took hold.’’
