Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF) said the retailer’s profits are expected to be at the top of its revised range after a strong resumption of trading following lockdown.
In a pre-close update to the City for the 52 weeks to November 3, Primark profits were predicted to come in at the top of its revised £300-£350m range following the coronavirus pandemic, with sales of £2bn since UK stores began to reopen in mid-June.
However, while basket sizes remain on average higher year on year, the retailer noted that in the UK sales are expected to be down 12% on a like-for-like basis.
Highlighting the footfall issue facing city centres, Primark said the fall in sales would be just 5% “if the four large UK destination city-centre stores are excluded”.
The retailer noted that sales in retail parks had been “much higher” post-lockdown than in previous years. Shopping centre and regional high street stores were broadly in line, while large destination city-centre stores have seen a “significant decline in footfall”.
“Our 16 largest destination city-centre stores contributed 13% of total sales pre-Covid-19 and 8% of sales after reopening,” said Primark.
The retailer said its sales in Europe were expected to be 17% lower on a like-for-like basis due to the ongoing health restrictions in place, particularly in countries such as Spain and France.
Primark said it had been able to sell the majority of the stock it had built up over the lockdown period, reducing an exceptional charge of £284m it had at its half-year results to around £150m.
New store openings for the second half of the year have been hampered by the pandemic, but Primark said it had opened three shops internationally since its last update.
No comments yet