M&S to cut 500 head-office jobs next week - Sky

LONDON (Reuters) - British retailer Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) will cut 500 jobs at its head office next week as its new chief executive Steve Rowe tries to halt a slump in sales, Sky News reported on Saturday.

It said M&S is to axe around 15 percent of the roles at its headquarters in Paddington, London, with more than half of the cuts affecting contractors.

Quoting sources, Sky said the cuts are likely to be announced next Thursday.

An M&S spokeswoman declined to comment on the report but added: "We said in May that organisation was an area of the business that needed further consideration and that we would update on this in the autumn."

Rowe, a 26-year M&S veteran, replaced Marc Bolland as CEO of the 132-year-old retailer in April with a remit to revive clothing and homeware, which contributes about 60 percent of profit but has seen five years of falling sales.

Long Britain's biggest clothing retailer, M&S has seen its market share eroded by rivals like Next and a push from supermarkets into clothing, while younger shoppers favour Primark and H&M's cheaper prices.

(Reporting by Stephen Addison; Editing by Jon Boyle)