Page 8 - TORCH #18 - May 2021

The Jewish roots of M&S
And how one of Britain’s most successful firms helped the Zionist cause.
8
CUFI.ORG.UK
Marks & Spencer, also known as M&S, is one of Britain’s most successful retailers. But did you know that
that Marks began his working life as a pedlar, travelling across West Yorkshire selling small goods.
M&S has Jewish roots? And not only that; throughout the last century, its founding families played a significant part in Britain’s support for the State of Israel.
In 1884, he met local businessman Isaac Dewhurst, who helped Marks improve his English and lent him £5 to set up his own stall on Leeds Kirkgate Market.
Early beginnings
The retail giant we know today had humble beginnings. Jewish immigrant Michael Marks was born in Slonim
in present-day Belarus and arrived in England in the early 1880s having fled Jewish persecution. He settled in Leeds with very little money and spoke poor English. The Yorkshire city was home to a company called Barran that provided employment for Jewish immigrants fleeing the Russian pogroms. It was here
Ten years later in 1894, with a growing business, Marks was introduced by Dewhurst to Thomas Spencer, who was born and bred in Skipton, Yorkshire. Dewhurst believed Spencer, known as an excellent book-keeper, would be
the ideal business partner for Marks. Marks and Spencer opened their first permanent stall on the Kirkgate Market and registered the company soon after. Spencer brought skills in administration and accounts, using his contacts to
get the best deals from manufacturers and Michael Marks used his giftings in selling and dealing at the market stalls.