Marks & Spencer unveils new ‘Leading Ladies’ lineup

Marks & Spencer has unveiled a new lineup for this season’s “Leading Ladies” marketing push, starring actress Emma Thompson, singers Rita Ora and Annie Lennox and five other “influential British women”.

M and S Leading Ladies
Marks and Spencer has unveiled a new ‘Leading Ladies’ brand ambassador line-up, featuring Emma Thompson, Rita Ora, Annie Lennox and five other ‘influential’ British women.

The retailer will be hoping the refreshed lineup  will lift its clothing sales, which marked a tenth consecutive quarter of decline in the three months to 28 December. 

The full cast includes supermodel Alek Wek, campaigner Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon, designer Lulu Kennedy, chef Rachel Khoo and structural engineer Roma Agrawal.

A new multi-platform campaign, shot by fashion photographer Annie Leibovitz, will launch on 31 March across print, online, mobile and outdoor.

Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, M&S executive director of marketing and business development, says the campaign is a “celebration of style and accomplishment”.

He adds: “Marks & Spencer is a democratic brand which is relevant to women of all ages and strands of life; it is therefore natural for M&S to celebrate women in this way.”

Marks & Spencer launched its first Leading Ladies push in August last year, which then featured actress Dame Helen Mirren, singer Ellie Goulding and artist Tracey Emin among others in a bid to reverse a long-term decline in sales of its womenswear. 

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