M&S invests in fridges that can cope with weather as hot as 45C

Marks & Spencer is investing in refrigeration equipment that can cope with weather as hot as 45C as the Climate Crisis is expected to drive regularly higher temperatures in the UK.“There is no doubt we were struggling in the nine days of [recent] extreme heat,” Stuart Machin, the chief executive of the food, fashion, beauty and homewares retailer, told shareholders at the group’s annual meeting in London on Tuesday.Last month the UK recorded its hottest June day ever with provisional highs of 37.7C, nearing the highest ever recorded temperature, in 2022, of 40.3C. A third heatwave of the summer will arrive this week, the Met Office said on Monday.Machin said the group was investing in kit that could cope with 45C heat as the company was “assuming it’s going to get hotter”. It is understood this includes fridges with doors that help them to stay cool in warmer weather.Machin said M&S had also had to order in more ice-cream, prompting one supplier to take on 10 extra staff, after six product lines went out of stock given the pace of demand in recent weeks.His comments come after several retailers admitted that refrigeration units struggled to cope with temperatures during June’s heatwave.Last week the chief executive of Sainsbury’s, Simon Roberts, said staff and suppliers had been “working around the clock” to ensure the chain’s fridges could cope with the high temperatures. He said Sainsbury’s was investing “hundreds of millions of pounds” in new refrigeration kit, with about 100 stores getting upgrades.The UK is expected to experience more spells of extremely hot weather as a result of the Climate Crisis, so businesses are racing to adapt. In May, the Climate Change Committee said the UK was “built for a climate that no longer exists” and needed urgent changes to survive Global Heating.Machin also reassured shareholders at the annual meeting that M&S was investing more in security measures amid concerns about a rise in Retail Crime.He said M&S had invested millions of pounds in increasing the number of security guards employed through a third party, with those workers “trained in how to treat customers”, including saying hello and goodbye.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionM&S is also investing in systems to tackle “petty crime”, such as when customers take items they have not scanned and paid for at self-service tills.He added that after feedback from shoppers and his “stylish 78-year-old” mother, M&S was ensuring that its autumn and winter fashion ranges would have items that “cover the tum, tops and bum”, to ensure its products had broad appeal, alongside efforts to attract younger shoppers in their 20s and 30s.