From tomorrow (Thursday 3rd December), M&S, the nation’s biggest lingerie retailer (selling 24 million bras a year) is launching a contact-free bra fit service at 64 of its biggest stores in England & Wales*.

The contact-free offering will be run by M&S’s team of lingerie experts and the consultations will include the following:

Contact-free measurement (colleagues will show customers how to take their own underband measurements accurately with a sterilised tape measure and will assess cup size – all from a social distance)
Advice on the different styles, shapes & options available at M&S (in-store and online)
Help selecting & purchasing the perfect bra – from everyday options, to sports bras, to something special.

Prior to the second lockdown in England, the adapted service was trialled at five large M&S stores (Bluewater, Bromley, Kingston, Milton Keynes, and Westfield White City) with great customer feedback on the ‘safe’ and ‘helpful’ service – particularly for first bra fit appointments.

It is recommended customers get fitted regularly (every 6-12 months) as breasts fluctuate with weight and hormonal changes (particularly during pregnancy). Wearing the correct bra size is critical for comfort, support, poise and most importantly confidence.

The adapted service will include the implementation of strict hygiene and social distancing measures to ensure customers can use the service with confidence. These measures include:

Hand washing: Hand sanitisation stations will be at the entrance to all lingerie fitting rooms and customers will be asked to sanitise their hands on arrival; colleagues will wash their hands between every appointment.
Social distancing: 2m distance to be maintained at all times between bra fitter and customer.
Extensive cleaning: Fitting rooms to be cleaned after every customer including all surfaces & all tape measures, with a deep clean every evening.
Quarantining product: All bras tried on and not purchased will be isolated.
Face coverings: Colleagues will wear a face covering, visor and disposable gloves and customers will wear a face covering – like they’ll dowhilst shopping the rest of the store.

All appointments for M&S bra fit will now be booked online to ensure contact details are collected for track & trace. Additionally, online booking will help M&S offer customers a better pre and post bra fit service with helpful appointment reminders.

Utilising digital technology

Digital technology plays an important role in how M&S Lingerie now serves customers. Over the past few months M&S has continued to offer bra fit advice to customers via its bra fit guidelines and online bra fit tool – which is used on average by over 20,000 customers a month. This technology will continue to be a focus for the retailer with customer shopping habits changed forever, and more lingerie purchases taking place online. Alongside this tool, M&S is utilising its in-store hand-held tech (Honeywells) to book customers in for appointments & look up stock online where needed. M&S Lingerie experts also use Microsoft Teams technology to collaborate as a team and stay up to date with new products available on the shop floor.

Laura Charles, M&S’s Lingerie Director said, “Finding the perfect bra isn’t just about the garment itself, it’s about the perfect fit. We know our customers will continue to use online services and we’re working hard on improving those, but we also want to offer them the choice of an in-store experience, so we’re delighted to be starting our contact-free bra fit service. Customers can expect the great service they know & love, but adapted for this time, with extensive safety measures in place to protect our customers and our colleagues.”