Next continues to profit after M&S cyber-attack

Fashion brand Next has continued to see a rise in sales following a cyber attack on rival firm M&S.

The British retailer on Wednesday reported a stronger-than-expected 10.5% rise in full-price sales in the third quarter and raised its full-year profit forecast for the fourth time in eight months.

Next expects to report pre-tax profits of just over £1.1 billion at the end of January 2026.

It said sales in the UK had weakened compared to the “exceptional performance” seen earlier in the year after the M&S cyberattack in April, but were better than expected.

“As a reminder, our sales performance in the UK benefited from favorable weather conditions and competitor disruption in the first half,” the retailer said in its results.

“Nonetheless, UK growth of +5.4% was stronger than we expected.”

in April, M&S was cyber-attacked and struggled to return click-and-collect services to normal, with online orders and stocks suspended and limited in some stores.

It was not until June that fashion products were made available for home delivery again.

M&S admitted that some personal customer data was taken during the attack.

Next wasn’t the only retailer to benefit from the impact of the M&S cyberattack; Sainsbury’s reported an increase in sales due to cyber disruption.

Next, which owns brands such as Reiss and Fatface, has over 800 stores in the UK and Ireland and an online presence in over 70 countries.

But the UK accounts for 80% of the retailer’s sales.