Andrew Shaw to leave M&S

Andrew Shaw, who heads up the beer, wine and spirits (BWS) division at high street retailer Marks & Spencer, will leave the business, with plans to spend “quality time with my family and assess opportunities over the coming months”.

Shaw, former buying director for Bibendum, joined M&S in April 2021, tasked with strengthening M&S Food’s transformation plan “to protect the magic of M&S whilst transforming the rest and become more relevant, more often to customers”, the company said at the time.

In a letter to suppliers, seen by Drinks Retailing, the company said Shaw will leave at the end of this month.

Shaw was “recruited to transform our BWS sourcing, range and offer, which has now been successfully completed”, the letter said.

“Andrew has decided that it is the right time for a new challenge and will be leaving the business at the end of October,” it continued. “He leaves us with our BWS categories in great shape.”

Shaw told the drinks business of his departure: “I’m extremely proud to have been part of the transformation across M&S and very proud of what the team have achieved in BWS.”

Shaw has a strong retail background, having worked as buying manager at Waitrose for five years, before joining Bibendum in 2012 to head up its buying team, overseeing wine ranging, supplier relationships and new product development.

When asked about next steps, he told db: “Some quality time with my family and assess opportunities over the coming months.”

Tom Holliday, head of wine and spirits at M&S, will expand his responsibilities to include beers, cider and low and no alcohol, Drinks Retailing has reported.

In other news, a survey by M&S which looks at which Brits take the longest to choose wine shows that Newcastle residents deliberate the most. Read more on that research here.