Primark Strategy

Introduction Primark Primark is a clothing retailer, operating in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Portugal and Belgium. It operates a total of 196 stores with 38 in Ireland, 138 in the UK, 14 in Spain, 2 in Germany, 1 in the Netherlands, 2 in Portugal and 1 in Belgium. Whilst the company’s main headquarters are based in Ireland where it trades as Penneys, the chain is a subsidiary of Associated British Foods plc (ABF), and is ultimately controlled by the Weston family through Wittington Investments.
The company positions itself as marketing fashionable clothing at competitive prices. In England the name is generally pronounced /? pra? m? rk/ PRY-mark. However, in Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and Scotland it is usually pronounced /? pri? m? rk/ PREE-mark. While the pronunciation on the Primark corporate video is PRY-mark the company had an intensive annual advertising campaign each Christmas during the 1980s in which the store was referred to on several occasions (throughout the song/jingle) as PREE-mark, although in the Republic of Ireland this lyric was dubbed over as ‘Penneys’. Liverpool’s five story 84,000 sq ft Primark was the world’s largest, but has now been superseded by the Primark in Bristol at 82-92 The Horsefair Bristol with 100,000 sq ft. Primark is a fast-growing, major, value clothing retail group employing 27,800 people. Primark’s own brands All of the company’s merchandise is made specifically for the company and as such Primark has its own brand names: •Ryan’s value Socks •Atmosphere — womenswear/footwear •Butler & Webb — Premium formal menswear •Cedarwood State — casual menswear •Denim Co. — womenswear, casual men’s and childrenswear •Early Days — babywear •Girl 2 Girl — young girlswear Opia – accessories •Rebel Senior — older boyswear •Rebel Junior — younger boyswear •Young Dimension (YD) — older girlswear •Primark Beauty – Cosmetics •Primark Home — home items •Secret Possessions — lingerie, women’s nightwear •Essentials – Basic Cheaper Items •Beach club- Luggage, ladies beachwear The company’s strategy for the business Key Strategies Following the introduction of new provisions concerning the duties of directors under the Companies Act 2006, directors must act in the way they consider, in good faith, would be most likely to promote the long-term success of the Company for the benefit of its members as a whole.
In so doing, the directors should have regard to a number of factors listed in that Act. Those factors include having regard to the Company’s employees, the need to foster the Company’s business relationships with suppliers and others, the impact of the Company’s operations on the community and the environment and the desirability of the Company maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct. With this in mind, the company has reaffirmed its commitment to a number of overriding principles.