M&S: Rose to unveil master plan

STORES group Marks & Spencer's new boss Stuart Rose will unveil how he plans to turn the group around on 12 July. Two days later, he faces Marks' army of small shareholders at its annual meeting.

It remains unclear whether stalker Philip Green will be back on his Monaco yacht by then. The billionaire retailer made no move to raise his £8bn-offer. Green said: 'I'm relaxed.'

Nick Bubb at Evolution Beeson Gregory thinks Marks' sales have picked up recently. 'The better weather since April will have helped both clothing and food,' he said.

Encouraging trading would make Green's task harder.

It is not just shareholders who are getting fed up with Marks' lavish payments to executives. Workers are also unhappy, amid reports of penny-pinching such as axing staff water coolers.

The average annual salary at Marks is £18,118. Rose's £850,000 salary and £1.25m golden hello would pay for 116 workers. Marks says staff pay is among the top three in the High Street.