As shoppers sweltered in the heatwave this week, Marks & Spencer announced it had launched a study to see how it can protect its most valuable stores from the impact of extreme weather.
The retailer said soaring temperatures and other extreme conditions caused by climate change represented a serious threat to sales and customer and staff experience.
Among its chief concerns are hygiene levels, damage to buildings and water shortages.
M&S has recruited engineering consultancy Arup to draw up risk assessments on its top 50 UK stores, and any future stores with a “development investment” of more than £10m.
“Climate change is a very real threat to our estate,” said M&S head of Plan A and facilities management Munish Datta.
“Arup will be taking a very practical look at 50 of our most important shops to understand, particularly in weather like this week, what impact temperature exceeding 30 or a traditional heatwave has,” he added.
“What impacts will that have on the comfort that users can enjoy in our shops? What would be the impact of heavy rain and flooding on our valuable built assets? This is a very important piece of work and its going to give us a lot of intelligence.”
Zoe Young, Plan A property project manager said it had already identified potential risks to energy management (security and price), internal store environment (staff and customer comfort levels and hygiene conditions), water management (localised and large scale flooding/summer droughts) as well as to building fabric (wind damage/ snow loading/pipes freezing).
M&S plans to develop a new investment appraisal tool as well as information and training material for staff but it has also pledged to share the results of the project with local authorities, include in areas such as Somerset, devastated by floods two years ago.
“It’s no good us sorting our stores out if the localities around them are suffering from extreme climate so we’re very conscious that we need to work with others,” said Datta. “We’re working with local authorities our landlords and the Environment agency to make sure the plans we develop can be localised and used by local communities as well.
“Shops are being affected by things like floods. Look what happened in Somerset last year,” Datta said. “If we want our shops to be fit for the future , ie not flooded out, we have to make these changes.”
M&S was one of eighty UK businesses to sign an open letter last month calling on the government to take ambitious climate action and support the building of a low-carbon economy.
The businesses are calling for Cameron to seek a strong climate deal that will limit climate change, set an ambitious fifth carbon budget, covering 2028-32, to reduce emissions and establish a long-term framework for investment in the low-carbon economy.
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