Marks And Spencer faces wave of cafe closures as Waterlooville site repurposed into larger foodhall amid nationwide expansion push
The latest development in the retailer’s reshaping sees marks and spencer repurposing the café in Waterlooville’s Wellington Retail Park to create a larger foodhall next month, a move that underscores a broader push to expand the brand’s food footprint while several on-site cafés have already closed in recent months.
Marks And Spencer cafe closures list and recent confirmations
A number of on-site cafés have closed in recent months, with closures including venues in Crawley, Dunblane, Stirling and Congleton. The Waterlooville café at Wellington Retail Park is the most recent confirmed closure and will be re-purposed to make space for an enlarged foodhall next month.
Why the Waterlooville change matters for shoppers
The decision to convert the Waterlooville café into a larger foodhall was reached after a review of the store. Management noted that many customers want to shop a wider range of food, and the repurposed space will be used to offer a broader product selection, including additional Select Farms produce. The change is acknowledged as potentially disappointing for some regular café users, while staff will continue working to serve customers in-store during the transition.
Growth plans: store openings, size requirements and jobs
As part of the chain’s expansion programme, 20 new or renewed stores are due to open between November 2025 and March 2026, with the rollout expected to create 800 jobs. An updated brochure of requirements sets minimum specifications for new sites: each must be 21, 500+ sqft, occupy a highly visible location with easy access to major roads, and offer dedicated parking.
Targets and potential locations under consideration
A list of 500 potential locations has been prepared to guide the expansion, with multiple Hampshire sites named among those under consideration. The Hampshire locations included are Portsmouth, Waterlooville, Bishops Waltham, Locks Heath/Fareham, Chandler’s Ford, Basingstoke, Fleet, Hook and Petersfield. The inclusion of Waterlooville on that list aligns with the decision to reconfigure the existing store there.
Executive outlook on M&S Food expansion
Senior commercial leadership has framed the food-store drive as a response to the strong performance of new food stores, using that momentum to explore further sites across the UK. The strategy explicitly includes looking at locations from Elgin to Exmouth and prioritizes opportunities where a large food store footprint can be delivered to improve shopping experience, range and availability for customers.
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Overall, marks and spencer is balancing a store-format shift—consolidating or closing some café sites while enlarging foodhall footprints at selected locations—to pursue an accelerated roll-out of larger food stores and meet its stated targets for openings and job creation. Recent updates may continue to evolve as individual store plans are finalised.
