Finance Manager - Commercial Property

Marks and Spencer; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading retail company in London is seeking a commercially minded finance professional to enhance its property team's operations. You will be responsible for financial analysis, aiding in store planning and business cases while collaborating with various teams. Ideal candidates have a professional accounting qualification and strong analytical skills. The role promotes a supportive work environment with numerous employee benefits that prioritize wellbeing and career development.

Benefits

20% colleague discount

Competitive holiday allowance

Discretionary bonus schemes

Strong pension and life assurance

Tailored induction and training

Exclusive perks through M&S Choices portal

Market-leading family policies

24/7 wellbeing support

One paid volunteer day a year

Qualifications

• Experience creating business cases and understanding financial metrics.
• Retail or property experience is preferred but not essential.

Responsibilities

• Leading the delivery of robust business cases for store estate planning.
• Driving enhancements and efficiencies in financial modelling.
• Providing challenge and insight on strategic initiatives.
• Owning store action inputs for closure cost accounting.
• Overseeing space, store launch, and estate-wide data for planning.
• Driving process improvements across Property and Finance.

Skills

Financial evaluation skills

Strong analytical skills

Advanced Excel capabilities

Commercial awareness

Influencing non-financial colleagues

Proactive approach

Education

Professional accounting qualification (ACA, CIMA, ACCA or Equivalent)

Tools

PowerBI

Job description

All the details

Summary

It's an exciting time to join the M&S Property team as we drive a bold business transformation. Optimising the Group's property portfolio and creating a store estate that's fit for the future is a key strategic pillar of this journey. Our Property team shapes the portfolio for Fashion, Home & Beauty, and Food, ensuring it meets the needs of our customers and the ambitions of our business.

Following a comprehensive strategic review, we're now executing initiatives to optimise the estate through openings, closures, downsizes, and modernisation programmes, while unlocking value through development opportunities and smarter lease management. We're looking for an ambitious, commercially minded finance professional to partner with our Acquisitions and Location Planning teams, delivering insightful financial analysis and evaluation to help propel this transformation forward.

To stay close to customers, our support teams are in the office three days a week as we believe that skills are developed through collaboration, and that spending time together makes us more creative and connected.

What you'll do

Join the M&S Property team at a pivotal time in our business transformation. You'll play a key role in optimising our store estate and delivering a portfolio fit for the future. Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading the delivery of robust business cases for store estate planning, including closures, extensions, and downsizes.
• Driving enhancements and efficiencies in financial modelling.
• Providing challenge and insight on strategic initiatives and supporting leadership forums.
• Owning store action inputs for Half Year and Year End closure cost accounting. Delivering ad-hoc modelling for property transactions and acquisitions.
• Overseeing space, store launch, and estate-wide data for planning and forecasting.
• Building a deep understanding of the estate and visiting proposed sites to support decision-making. Driving process improvements across Property and Finance.

Who you are

Your skills and experience will include:

• A professional accounting qualification (ACA, CIMA, ACCA or Equivalent) and strong financial evaluation skills.
• Experience creating business cases and understanding financial metrics.
• Commercial awareness and the ability to influence non-financial colleagues.
• Strong analytical skills and advanced Excel capabilities (PowerBI experience is a bonus).
• A proactive, resilient approach and a passion for improving processes.
• Retail or property experience is preferred but not essential.

What's in it for you?

Working at M&S means being part of something bigger - helping to deliver quality, value and service to millions of customers every day. We're inclusive, fast-moving and always evolving, with a strong sense of purpose and a focus on doing the right thing.

Here are just a few of the benefits that make working here even more rewarding:

• 20% colleague discount on all M&S products and many third-party brands for you and someone in your household, available once you've completed your probation
• Competitive holiday allowance with the option to buy more
• Discretionary bonus schemes linked to your performance and ours
• Strong pension and life assurance to help plan for the future
• Tailored induction and training to support your development from day one
• Exclusive perks and savings through our M&S Choices portal
• Market-leading family policies, including parental, adoption and neonatal leave
• 24/7 wellbeing support, including virtual GP access and mental health services
• One paid volunteer day a year to support a cause that matters to you

Everyone's welcome

We are ambitious about the future of retail. We're disrupting, innovating and leading the industry into a more conscientious, inspiring digital era. We're transforming how we work together and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. Marks & Spencer strives to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make change happen.

We are committed to building diverse and representative teams, where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and be at their best. We support each other and work together to win together.

If you feel you'd benefit from any support or reasonable adjustments during any stage of the recruitment process, please don't hesitate to let us know when completing your application. This information will be picked up by our team, so we can try and put steps in place to help you be at your best through this process.