The first M&S slogan, coined by Michael Marks, was 'Don't ask the price, it's a penny'. It was very effective, and was used in lots of the Company's advertising material. The advert for hair pins below ( 'packed in 1d boxes of long lengths') was published in The Marks & Spencer Grand Annual which ran from 1909 to 1915.
![M&S Advert for Hair Pins 1912-13](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/grpl-mylearning/resources/mands-birth-of-a-brand-advertising/hairpin--grand-annual-winter-1912-13.jpg)
M&S Advert for Hair Pins 1912-13
21st Century Advertising
The first Simply Food stores opened at Surbiton and Twickenham in July 2001. Advertising for the stores needed to communicate that this was something new, but still M&S.
![M&S Simply Food advert](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/grpl-mylearning/resources/mands-birth-of-a-brand-advertising/a05-26-simply-food--1.jpg)
M&S Simply Food Advert
![M&S Simply Food Advert](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/grpl-mylearning/resources/mands-birth-of-a-brand-advertising/a05-26-simply-food--2_1.jpg)
M&S Simply Food Advert
Project leader Matthew Knowles explained:
'The brief to the designers was to come up with something that was recognisable as Marks & Spencer but with a completely different feel.'
To find out what happened during the hundred years in between the examples above, download the
M&S Advertising and Branding timeline, which lists key dates and events in the Company's history and various advertising campaigns up to present day.
![St Michael Socks Advert 1953](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/grpl-mylearning/resources/mands-birth-of-a-brand-advertising/sock-advert-jun-1953.jpg)
St Michael Socks Advert 1953