Member Info for chilting

What could be better a quintessential British retailer selling all things British to the world online.
Maybe this will be the way to finally break into the Chinese and US markets.

Another High Street chain bites the dust -

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56407155

I can see the point in not investing when shares double or triple and putting a big investment in right at the beginning but this can only be part of an overall investment strategy.
Its also worth investing in proven stocks that have potential and banking profits in solid FTSE100 companies for a smaller return.
Luckily I have invested early with ITX, over the last 4 years, and now have over 2 million shares, if all goes well I will top slice profit for an extended period without selling out and invest profits in top FTSE shares.

I think that I would concede that there has to be a solid reason for closing a store, but one solid reason is that if there are other M&S stores in the vicinity that offer a better service and range then that is a solid reason.

Carrington
That could well be the case but if M&S and Next both closed there wouldn't be much left in Worthing and the M&S customers would probably use the Shoreham store instead.
The point is that with so much trade moving online the branch network has to be scaled back and if there is another M&S store in the vicinity then it has to be the best option to close the least profitable. Its no difference, in a way, to the Banks closing branches.

I will be watching with interest how M&S act with regard their Worthing store.

Worthing has lost 2 department stores in the last few years - Debenhams and Beals - plus numerous Arcadia outlets. This leaves just M&S and Next and a few of the Sports retailers as the biggest chains in the town.

The M&S store in Worthing dates back to Edwardian times and is a typical medium sized High Street branch with a Food Hall attached.
M&S are well represented in the area with a full sized out of town store at Shoreham a few miles away offering everything, including furniture, and another large store at Brighton in the City Centre.

Moving out of Worthing would be another nail in the coffin for the town but on the face of it would seem to be a logical move for M&S.

The other option to consider could be electric batteries with a natural gas range extender - just as Ceres and Weichai are developing.
In the absence of a hydrogen refuelling network this could be the medium term answer with hydrogen being a longer term goal.

neil
The action still needs to be taken to sort out this store closure issue decisively, one way or the other, on each of the c 45 stores.
Its not just the cash burn, but the issue itself which is preventing the company moving forward.

The publication of the Governments strategy to improve the nations bus network includes a commitment for greener buses.
Its good to see that hydrogen is being considered as an option to power these greener buses.
With the collaboration between Ceres and Weichai at an advanced stage, hopefully Ceres can benefit in some way.

The simple truth is that all tech sector shares that show their potential are overvalued in a financial sense - that's why its so important to look for the dips if you wish to invest but the real investment bargains only come when you spot the potential before other investors.

The success of M&S.com and Ocado Retail is clear for all to see and it can only get better as the DC's and CFC's become more efficient and more numerous.

What is not clear is the cash burn on unprofitable bricks and mortar stores. The newer out of town stores and the convenience store chain may be a success but the board still have unresolved problems and difficult decisions to make in the High Street that will undoubtedly have a major impact on the value of our investment if action isn't taken quickly.

jimjam
With regard to M&S, that means that M&S it is basically running the Ocado Retail operation with technical support from Ocado Technology.

Ocado Retail showcases M&S products but also offers a massive range from mainstream and smaller producers to compliment the range. M&S get 50% of the profit from the whole operation plus the extra profit they make on their own branded products.

Currently Ocado own the other 50% of Ocado Retail but they may sell this stake to M&S or another retailer. If this happened Ocado Technology would continue to provide the tech supports and build CFC's as needed.

Hello jimjam
Its important to think of Ocado as a tech company - the grocery delivery business in the UK only accounts for 10% of the company.

The other 90% is involved in rolling out Ocado Solutions and Tech around the globe in the form of CFC's - currently 14 are under construction globally - one has just opened in the US with Kroger.

In much the same way as Amazon did, Ocado has been plowing profits and new money into the business over an extended period but profits will start to flow as more CFC's open - Ocado get a percentage of the sales revenue.

L3
I see MKS as a good solid long term investment with little downside.
Despite considerable headwinds the board seem to have the talent needed to bring MKS back to the fore of UK retailing.
The jewel in the crown is the Ocado Retail partnership, that took some guts to take that on and now it has the potential to be very profitable.
MKS is a very firm long term hold alongside Ocado, with M&S making its way back to the FTSE100 and Ocado becoming a massive tech company on the world stage.

This has to be good news!
https://www.worldoil.com/news/2021/3/12/us-shale-prioritizing-debt-over-drilling-just-as-opec-predicted

Very opportunistic!
https://www.worldoil.com/news/2021/3/11/china-buying-record-volumes-of-iran-s-sanction-discounted-crude

The difference is though that MF only exist to encourage investors to trade using the services of their clients - so they will say anything and use contributors who clearly state that the views are their own.

IC on the other hand expects itself to be taken seriously and is part of the FT Group - should we not expect more from them?

I guess we can all recount instances where the Brokers and Media made the wrong call with their share tips.

But few tips can be as awful as IC's last tip for MKS at the beginning of November 2020 - they recommended sell at 92p.

Also at about the same time they recommended WTB as a sell at 2271p - now 3461p.

Maybe we should take a contrarian view for everything they tip?

Most of the 90% off offers seem to have sold out now with the exception of Men's Suits and formal Jackets etc.

There are still plenty of other offers, up to around 50% - but I guess that's par for the course.

CWR seems to defy gravity because of high potential and sentiment and the SP frequently moves into overbought territory.

On a much smaller scale CWR can be compared to the big US tech stocks with investors just pilling in and ignoring the financials.

The dip towards 1000p may turn out to be the best buying opportunity of the year, unless wider market forces come into play again.