The new chief executive of Marks & Spencer is to reportedly to stake his reputation on technology that will tell customers when their clothes clash.
Mr Roger Holmes, who is due to become chief executive at the start of next month, will also invest heavily in microchips that will warn shoppers when food passes its sell-by date.
Mr Holmes is hoping the group's sales growth will be driven by the expansion of the Simply Food concept, home furnishings stores and financial services, as well as its core clothing business.
But according to the London Times, he wants to push the development of technology in both food and clothing.
Chips embedded in clothing would enable shoppers to scan a garment in the dressing room and see how it matched other clothes. Once at home, the chip would inform the customer if the garment were accidentally put on the wrong washing machine cycle.
Mr Holmes also hopes the chips, which warn customers when food has past its sell-by date, will help staff trace any such food in the store from its source.
The paper says he wants to move M&S from being a product-led retailer to one that develops ranges to suit a variety of lifestyles.
