MARKS & SPENCER APPOINTS LIONESS ALEX SCOTT AS FIRST-EVER FITNESS AMBASSADOR
By: Janice Ronan
Leading British retail conglomerate, Marks and Spencer (M&S) upholds a reputation for exceptional quality, value, service and innovation. With a vision of becoming the world’s most trusted retailer, doing the right thing for customers, with quality products at the heart of everything they do, M&S has developed a strategy to restructure for growth, and through this they are seeing the start of a new M&S. Part of that plan includes investing in its sportswear assortment in recent years and has identified sportswear as a key growth category.
The famous retailer strategically invested in the rapidly growing sports platform, The Sports Edit in 2022 before officially launching it on M&S the following year. This new frontier has brought an exciting new partnership with their first-ever fitness ambassador, Alex Scott, MBE. The announcement comes after the group has seen sales of third-party fitness clothing sprout up over 200% throughout the course of a year, having introduced brands at M&S in 2021 to appeal to younger customers. Good move, M&S’s own line of athletic wear, which launched in 2020, currently sells over 1.6 million items annually.
Scott, National Football Museum Hall of Fame Inductee, well-known BBC Sports Broadcaster, former Lionesses and Arsenal footballer and womens sports pioneer began her illustrious athletic career at only eight years of age, when she signed to Arsenal, before going on to spend much of her career with the club. She is no stranger to limelight and with the M&S partnership, has just added to her already impressive resume, which includes 5 FA Women’s Premier League titles, 1 WSL title, 7 Women’s FA Cups, 2 FA Women’s Premier League Cups, 3 FA WSL Cups and 1 UEFA Women’s Cup.
Scott announced the new endeavor in June 2024 via Instagram Sharing an image carousel with her two million followers, she certainly looked the part, clad in stylish blue, white and green activewear carried by M&S. Perfect timing the news came ahead of Euro 2024 (Germany) and the Paris Olympics.
"I’m so excited to be announced as @marksandspencer Activewear Ambassador - what a moment!! Could not be happier. Really excited for you to see what’s to come with this iconic British brand... Let’s go."
~ Alex Scott, M&S First-Ever Fitness Ambassador
Scott is also an accomplished author and advocate. Her autobiography entitled, How (Not) To Be Strong is a Sunday Times best seller. It was through the book that she shares the lessons that have shaped her and the tarnished truth behind the gleaming football trophies as she revealed to her readers that she had been a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of her father during childhood. She pledged that all proceeds from book sales would go to The Refuge Charity, which provides specialist services to survivors of domestic abuse.
M&S is such an iconic British brand, and I couldn’t be happier to be joining the team – definitely another “pinch-me” moment.
~ Alex Scott, M&S First-Ever Fitness Ambassador
As M&S has been boosting its style in clothing to attract a wider range of customers, its strategy of delivering “much better products and style” has been paying off. Last summer, the retailer achieved a market leading position in womenswear, with a 9.5 percentage of the UK’s clothing and footwear market, marking the first time it had taken the number one spot in over four years.
When two icons unite, the possibilities are endless. The Scott partnership will likely introduce a fresh, youthful energy to the mix and bridge generations of shoppers. With Alex’s undeniable presence and influence and the store’s timeless appeal, together, they redefine the magic of M&S.