The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Associated British Foods, the owner of clothing retailer Primark, raised its estimate of sales lost during temporary closures of stores in major markets in the autumn of 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions to £430 million ($578 million).
The group previously forecast a £375 million sales hit.
AB Foods said on Friday it still expects Primark’s full year 2020/21 sales and profit to be higher than the previous year.
Primark made a profit of £362 million in its 2019/20 financial year which ended on Sept. 12.
ADVERTISEMENT
The group’s stores in its major markets of Ireland, England, France and Belgium have reopened in the last week.
It said sales in the days since reopening in each of these markets had been “very strong”.
Across its markets, 34 stores remain temporarily closed, including all stores in Northern Ireland and Austria.
AB Foods said all orders Primark has placed with suppliers have been honoured.
The group added that at this early stage in its new financial year trading across its grocery, sugar, ingredients and agriculture businesses has been ahead of both expectations and last year.
It said that it has completed all practical preparations for the end of the Brexit transition period on Dec. 31 and contingency plans were in place should its businesses experience disruption.
By James Davey
The rental platform saw its stock soar last week after predicting it would hit a key profitability metric this year. A new marketing push and more robust inventory are the key to unlocking elusive growth, CEO Jenn Hyman tells BoF.
Nordstrom, Tod’s and L’Occitane are all pushing for privatisation. Ultimately, their fate will not be determined by whether they are under the scrutiny of public investors.
The company is in talks with potential investors after filing for insolvency in Europe and closing its US stores. Insiders say efforts to restore the brand to its 1980s heyday clashed with its owners’ desire to quickly juice sales in order to attract a buyer.
The humble trainer, once the reserve of football fans, Britpop kids and the odd skateboarder, has become as ubiquitous as battered Converse All Stars in the 00s indie sleaze years.