HOWZAT

In September 2000, when M&S was in crisis after chief executive Peter Salisbury had quit and clothing sales were in freefall, other investors panicked, but Morris spotted an opportunity, picking up a further £67m worth of shares for as little as 203p.

On Friday, shares in the retailer closed at 489&189;p: for the supermum from California, M&S has proved to be a very profitable adventure.

IT IS not just the share price that is back in vogue. The crowds at the M&S flagship store in London’s Marble Arch last week were testament to its growing popularity among shoppers.

Francesca Sozzi, 30, from east London, was among those fighting her way through the Christmas crush. “Two to three years ago it was terrible, but in the last six months it has got a lot better and become a lot more fashionable,” she said.

So what exactly has chief executive Stuart Rose done in the past 18 months? Rose has a simple mantra, which he repeats often to staff and investors: “Better product, better environment and better stores.” He spent his first two months defending M&S after the bid by Green, but having seen off the retail tycoon he immediately set about restoring self-belief at M&S.

After almost a decade of boardroom battles, a lack of leadership and increasing competition on the high street, M&S had lost its position as Britain’s No 1 clothing retailer. It had also lost its way.

“We found ourselves in a vicious circle of bad press and bad sales,” he said.

To help improve customer service he brought in Mary Gober, a motivational guru from America, who had more than 5,000 M&S staff dancing in the aisles during a four-hour seminar at the Birmingham NEC. Rose has also struck a new deal with George Davies, the designer behind the successful Per Una brand.

Rose — who had quit M&S 16 years ago frustrated by the bureaucracy and politics — has also transformed the head office. Approval of a new garment, for example, used to require 27 steps; today it involves only six.

Marketing director Steve Sharp, who has worked alongside Rose for 16 years, launched a new marketing campaign, “Your M&S”, which has proved hugely successful. Weekly sales of a luxury chocolate pudding — which featured in one advert — jumped from £10,000 to £500,000 and the initiative was short-listed for a Campaign magazine award.

The early signs are encouraging. Last month Rose announced that in the first half of the year pre-tax profits had risen 20% to £302.8m.

SO where now for M&S? Is the recovery a sustainable one or yet another false dawn for its shareholders? It would be understandable if M&S’s long-standing army of small shareholders and institutional backers were sceptical.

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