Marks & Spencer, that beloved bastion of Percy Pigs and pants, has revealed it’s had to hire an entire warehouse to store the mountain of post-Brexit paperwork now needed for exporting goods to Ireland.
Brexit Red Tape Takes Over
Since the UK left the customs union in 2020, retailers exporting to the EU have been drowning in forms, and M&S is no exception. The company has 16 stores in the Republic of Ireland, plus product shelves in a number of Applegreen petrol stations, but getting the goods across the border now comes with a bureaucratic migraine.
It’s not just about packing the chicken sandwiches anymore – every tray of goods requires a stack of paperwork fit for a Dickens novel.
£16 Million in Brexit Costs
In 2021, M&S lifted the lid on how costly Brexit had been, admitting it forked out an eye-watering £16 million on tariffs, admin, and supply chain headaches. All those expenses are piling up like receipts in your nan’s handbag.
M&S’s annual financial report, optimistically titled “Never The Same Again – Forging A Reshaped M&S”, laid out the grim reality:
- Higher supply chain costs at key depots in Motherwell and Faversham.
- Veterinary certification fees (because even sausages need paperwork now).
- Additional costs for digital tracking and tracing systems.
- Tariffs on exporting clothes, home goods, and food products into the EU.
On top of all that, trade restrictions, delays at ports, and new layers of complexity have hit stock availability. So if you’ve ever wondered why your favourite M&S sarnie seems to disappear off the shelves, Brexit red tape might just be the culprit.
Paperwork > Percy Pigs
It’s a damning reflection of how Brexit bureaucracy has spiralled that one of the UK’s most iconic retailers now has a dedicated warehouse to house paper forms. You couldn’t make it up – a warehouse of paperwork, just so a few Colin the Caterpillars can get to Ireland.
At this rate, it might be cheaper for M&S to start sending forms by the lorry load and leaving the sandwiches behind.
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