M&S could do with the Next/ Davies treatment

George Davies was not the founder of Next, although he made a great contribution to its initial success.

I was chairman of Hepworths menswear when we decided to buy a chain of 80 rainwear shops and turn them into womenswear. Our design group thought of the name, designed the interiors and set a style for the merchandise.

Trevor Morgan was the managing director and Davies and his then wife joined the team as merchandise director and designer.

After the launch I resigned as chairman and Davies succeeded Morgan as managing director. The rest, as they say, is history.

I’m sure his skills will do wonders for Marks & Spencer, as merchandising is definitely the message that its customers need to hear, rather than disorganised titivation.

Terence Conran

22 Shad Thames

London SE1