Primark to trial click and collect in some UK stores

Primark said click & collect has the potential to satisfy unfulfilled demand.

Associated British Foods said its Primark fashion business, which has shunned the extra cost of home delivery, will trial a UK click & collect service on children's products.

The group said the move builds on its enhanced digital capability. It revamped its website earlier this year. It said Primark, which trades as Penneys in Ireland, has chosen a much-expanded range of children's products for the trial, building to about 2,000 options across clothing, accessories and lifestyle products.

It believes click & collect has the potential to satisfy unfulfilled demand, driving footfall from both existing and new customers to deliver incremental sales in store.

The trial will take place in up to 25 stores in the northwest of England, starting towards the end of the year.

In a trading update, AB Foods, which also owns major sugar, grocery, agriculture and ingredients businesses, maintained its full-year guidance after trading in line with expectations in its latest quarter.

The group said revenue for its third quarter to May 28 increased by 32%. Sales in its food businesses increased 10% which reflected price actions to recover input cost inflation and volume increases in the ingredients business.

Primark relocated a store in Co Carlow last week

The 28,000 sq ft, store, situated on Kennedy Avenue in Carlow Town, opened its doors on June 14 and is set to employ over 100 people from the local area.

The opening of the Carlow store is the first part of a €250m investment that Primark has committed to Ireland over the next ten years.

The programme also includes redevelopment, relocation, or refurbishment of its Cork, Dublin, and Galway stores.

Currently, Primark is constructing a €75m warehousing and distribution facility in Newbridge, Co Kildare.

Primark will also open a new store in Tallaght by the end of the financial year.

In Britain and Ireland, Primark saw a marked improvement in like-for-like sales. However, in continental Europe, sales performance only started to improve at the end of the quarter after the final public health restrictions were lifted.

The company said in a statement that it "remains on track to deliver a full year adjusted operating profit margin of some 10%".

Primark sales increased 81%. All Primark stores traded during the period in contrast to last year when most stores were closed until the middle of April due to Covid-19 lockdowns.

The group expects "significant progress" in full-year adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share.

Reuters