<P> In 1988, the company acquired Brooks Brothers, an American clothing company and Kings Super Markets, a US food chain . </P> <P> In 2016 M&S expanded to sell through European marketplace Zalando on their German, French, Dutch, Belgian and Austrian sites with a range of kidswear and lingerie . </P> <P> M&S's profits peaked in the financial year 1997 / 1998 . At the time it was seen as a continuing success story, but with hindsight it is considered that during Sir Richard Greenbury's tenure as head of the company, profit margins were pushed to untenable levels, and the loyalty of its customers was seriously eroded . The rising cost of using British suppliers was also a burden, as rival retailers increasingly imported their goods from low - cost countries, but M&S's belated switch to overseas suppliers undermined a core part of its appeal to the public . Another factor was the company's refusal until 2001 to accept any credit cards except its own chargecard . </P> <P> These factors combined to plunge M&S into a sudden slump, which took the company, its shareholders, who included hundreds of thousands of small investors, and nearly all retail analysts and business journalists, by surprise . The company's share price fell by more than two thirds, and its profits fell from more than a billion pounds in 1997 and 1998 to £ 145 million in the year ended 31 March 2001 . </P>

When did marks and spencer start accepting credit cards