The British figure at 1,180 million the adverse impact on its sales of the second wave if the closings are prolonged
LONDON, Jan 14 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Primark textile chain, belonging to the Associated British Foods (AB Foods) group, plans to open 15 new stores this year, of which five will be located in Spain, where the British firm already has fifty establishments, according to the multinational , which currently has 389 stores around the world.
Thus, in addition to the opening of five new stores in Spain, the chain plans to open three stores in the United States and another two in Italy, while adding a new store in the markets of the United Kingdom, France, Poland and the Netherlands. in addition to landing in the Czech Republic with the opening of its first store in Prague.
“Although Covid-19 has delayed some store openings, we continue to expect to add 65,000 net square meters of additional retail space this year,” the company said.
Primark reported that in the first four months of its fiscal year, revenue totaled 2,031 million pounds (2,284 million euros), a turnover 30% lower than the same period of the previous year as a result of the impact of the second wave of the pandemic, which currently keeps 305 of the 389 establishments closed, around 76% of the firm’s commercial surface.
Of this figure, Spain was the main supporter of the chain’s activity by keeping most of its stores open, with only ten closed out of the 50 that the brand has in the country, while 100% of its stores remain closed. stores in the UK (190), Germany (32), Ireland (36), the Netherlands (20), Portugal (10), Austria (5), as well as the only Primark stores in Poland and Slovenia.
In this sense, the chain calculates that in the first 16 weeks of its financial year, closures and other restrictions have caused the loss of 540 million pounds (607 million euros) in sales, warning that, under the hypothesis that the measures lasted until the end of February, the adverse impact would reach 1,050 million pounds (1,180 million euros), 61.5% above the estimate on December 31.
“Uncertainty about short-term store closing periods has increased. Assuming that all currently closed stores remain closed until February 27, 2021, the loss of sales would reach about £ 1.05 billion,” the chain said.
However, the chain highlighted that, while the stores were open, commercial activity was solid with sales 14% lower in terms comparable to last year.
“Sales in our stores in large shopping complexes were higher than a year ago, while in street stores they were lower and in large downtown stores, which depend heavily on tourism and travelers, the influx decreased substantially, “he added.