Marks & Spencers, the most famous name in UK High Street retailing, is planning an ambitious international expansion that does not include China -- at least for now.
When barely a week seems to pass without a western retailer proclaiming big plans for China, the hesitation of M&S is puzzling, to say the least.
Of course, M&S is, rightly or wrongly, seen as one of the more conservative names in UK retailing -- it stubbornly held out against opening on Sundays while its rivals eagerly embraced the shop-till-you-drop trend.
And despite the foreigners who flock its London stores, M&S has struggled to develop a coherent international strategy.
The retailer closed its directly-owned European stores in 2001 and its international operations, which contribute just 9% of profits, now consist mainly of franchised stores spread across 30 countries.
Nevertheless, M&S has decided that the time is ripe for a major foreign expansion and it plans to open around 150 new stores outside the UK using the franchise model.
This summer M&S will open its largest international franchise outlet yet - in Dubai. Once the franchise model has been shown to work in a large-format store, I suspect M&S will use it in China.
However, it remains to be seen how well Chinese shoppers will take to M&S mainstays such as knickers and chicken tikka.
