Madrid, June 20 (Europe Press) –
Textile chain Primark, owned by Associated British Foods group, reported sales of £1,727 million (€2,009 million) in the third financial quarter, ending May 28, an 81% increase over the same quarter last year. . the previous year at a fixed exchange rate.
Sales in the quarter were 4% higher than the level recorded in the same period in the last fiscal year before the pandemic three years ago, although sales were 9% lower than the previous comparable quarter.
In this way, the British textile chain has so far this year increased its income by 69% to 5,267 million pounds (6129 million euros). Thus, the company is confident to deliver an adjusted operating profit margin for the full year of around 10%.
The multinational highlighted that all of its stores remained open during the quarter, in contrast to the situation in the previous year, when a large number of establishments remained closed until April 2021. Likewise, the company highlighted the increase in its sales related to tourism revitalization and face-to-face work.
Primark sales likewise in the UK and Ireland improved significantly in the quarter, while performance in continental Europe only began to improve towards the end of the period after all Covid restrictions still in place were removed.
In the UK, total sales were well ahead of last year, up 61% and 2% compared to pre-Covid levels, while comparable sales were still down 4%.
Similarly, quarterly sales in continental Europe were 106% higher than a year ago and 7% higher than the corresponding period three years ago, with a 20% increase in retail space. However, in comparable data, sales fell by 15%.
For the US, Primark’s total sales in the quarter were 34% above pre-Covid levels thanks to new store openings.
“The return of tourism and more office work along with improved weather in all of our markets was reflected in the strong customer reaction to our fashion collections,” the company said, noting the surge in sales of holiday items, such as bathing suits and beach towels.
At the end of May, Primark had 403 stores and plans to open five more before the end of the year, including Chieti and Bologna in Italy; Brno in the Czech Republic; Tallaght in Ireland; and in New York, United States.
“We are making good progress in developing a robust pipeline of new stores for the upcoming fiscal year and meeting our ambition to have approximately 530 stores by the end of fiscal year 2026,” the company said.
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