Retailers feeling Brexit impact as empty shelves spotted in supermarkets

Marks & Spencer insisted bare shelves were just  temporary, caused by a 'systems issue'. Picture: Larry Cummins

It is not just everyday consumers that are finding it difficult to adjust to the new way of doing business post-Brexit – major businesses are also still feeling their way around.

British retail giant M&S is also ironing out some supply issues, with customers in its Irish stores noticing empty shelves in recent days where items such as milk would normally be.

M&S, which has a major line of British-made food and drink that has become a favourite of Irish customers, insisted bare shelves were just  temporary, caused by a "systems issue".

Week one post Brexit and @marksandspencer Newbridge has next to no fresh food.
Empty shelves which would normally be full of fresh produce are now being padded with bottled water and packaged cheese.
Brexit or coincidence?
Either way, impossible to do food shop. pic.twitter.com/abrQ30Nw3o

— Phil MacSheoinín (@MacSheoinin_) January 6, 2021

When asked to elaborate further if it was linked to Brexit, a spokesperson told the Irish Examiner: 

Following the UK’s recent departure from the EU, we are transitioning to new processes and it is taking a little longer for some of our products to reach our stores."

M&S said it was "working closely" with partners and suppliers to ensure customers can continue to enjoy the same range of products, and that it was working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, apologising to its Irish customers for the inconvenience.

Other major retailers in Ireland such as Tesco reported no such issues, with insiders saying stockpiling had taken place long before Christmas for many products in anticipation of a potential no-deal scenario.

Yes. We saw the same in the M&S in the Blanchardstown Centre. Many empty shelves. Aldi (which uses a lot of Irish produce) was fully stocked next door. For balance, M&S said “Due to a [IT] systems issue, some of our products are unavailable” but didn’t directly refer to #Brexit. pic.twitter.com/xrNM62fYsb

— Kevin OCeallaigh (@koceallaigh) January 6, 2021

German discount supermarket Lidl insisted its three-year strategy of preparing for Brexit had ensured a smooth transition in Irish stores, and that it did not expect any hiccups in the short-term.

"At Lidl Ireland, we have been scenario planning and preparing for Brexit for more than three years, and as a result we do not have significant supply issues at present," a spokesperson said.

"Along with our robust and agile supply chain and logistics network that can quickly scale up to increased demand, we have also been downsizing our reliance on the mainland UK landbridge for quite some time, as well as planning alternative haulier routes in anticipation of Brexit."

Therefore, it has the measures in place to ensure that it is protected from the many challenges associated with Brexit, the spokesperson added.

"In addition, we work with more than 260 local Irish suppliers and had implemented a successful Brexit preparation process for our supplier network to enable them to prepare for Brexit."

Lidl said it was "confident" customers would be able to continue to shop in its stores across the country as normal.