Primark (or Penneys) is a clothing retailer, operating in
IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
, the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
,
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
and
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
. It operates a total of 188 stores with 34 in Ireland, 125 in the UK, 8 in Spain and 1 in the Netherlands, Germany and in Portugal. 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 familyThe Weston family of Canada and the United Kingdom are prominent businesspeople with global interests in food and clothing businesses. The family operations began with the founding of a bakery in Toronto, Ontario by George Weston....
through
Wittington InvestmentsWittington Investments Limited is an unquoted British investment company. It is 79.2% owned by the Garfield Weston Foundation, which is one of the UK's largest grant-making trusts, and 20.8% owned by members of the Weston family....
.
Primark (or Penneys) is a clothing retailer, operating in
IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
, the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
,
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
and
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
. It operates a total of 188 stores with 34 in Ireland, 125 in the UK, 8 in Spain and 1 in the Netherlands, Germany and in Portugal. 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 familyThe Weston family of Canada and the United Kingdom are prominent businesspeople with global interests in food and clothing businesses. The family operations began with the founding of a bakery in Toronto, Ontario by George Weston....
through
Wittington InvestmentsWittington Investments Limited is an unquoted British investment company. It is 79.2% owned by the Garfield Weston Foundation, which is one of the UK's largest grant-making trusts, and 20.8% owned by members of the Weston family....
. The company positions itself as marketing fashionable clothing at competitive prices.
In England the name is generally . However, in
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
,
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
,
IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
, and
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
it is usually pronounced
-mark. While some believe the store to have originally been pronounced
-mark, and it is pronounced that way on a Primark corporate video, 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
-mark, although in Ireland this lyric was dubbed over as 'Penneys'.
LiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
's five story 84,000 sqft Primark is the world's largest.
Market position
Primark is known for selling clothes at the budget end of the market. The company's success is based on sourcing supply cheaply, making clothes with simple designs and fabrics, only making them in the most popular sizes, buying stock in huge bulks and varieties and not advertising.
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:
- Active — sporting boyswear
- Atmosphere — womenswear and accessories and footwear
- Butler & Webb — 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 Active — 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
Departments
Primark is split internally into numbered sections.
- 1 - Accessories
- 2 - Hosiery
- 4 - Lingerie
- 5 - Kidswear
- 6 - Mens
- 7 - Shoes
- 8 - Womenswear
- 11 - Homeware
- 26 - Christmas
Working practices
In 2005, Primark scored the lowest of all leading clothing chains in the UK - at just 3.5 out of 20 - on an ethical index that ranks criteria such as workers' rights and whether they do business with oppressive regimes. The figure was contested by Primark and
Ethical Consumer released a statement indicating that marks had been skewed due to its position in a wider company group.
In 2006, Primark joined the
Ethical Trading InitiativeThe Ethical Trading Initiative is an alliance of companies, non-governmental organisations and trade union organisations promoting ethical consumerism....
, a collaborative organization bringing together businesses, trades unions and NGOs to work on labour rights issues in their supply chains. ETI members commit to working towards the implementation of a code of conduct based on the International Labour Organisation's core conventions.
In 2008, poor working conditions in Indian factories supplying Primark were the subject of an undercover investigative documentary by the BBC's
PanoramaPanorama is the longest-running current affairs documentary series in the world. Launched on 11 November 1953 on BBC Television, it focuses on investigative journalism. Daily Mail reporter Pat Murphy was the original presenter, only lasting one episode after accidentally broadcasting a technical...
. Primark subsequently stopped doing business with the Indian supplier.
On 9 January 2009, a supplier was forced by ETI to remove its branding from Primark stores and websites following a
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
/
The ObserverThe Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In about the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a left-liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-History:The...
investigation into the employment practices. The investigation alleged use of illegal immigrant labour which was paid less than the UK legal minimum wage.
Child labour
On 23 June 2008, the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
broadcast a
PanoramaPanorama is the longest-running current affairs documentary series in the world. Launched on 11 November 1953 on BBC Television, it focuses on investigative journalism. Daily Mail reporter Pat Murphy was the original presenter, only lasting one episode after accidentally broadcasting a technical...
programme that showed manufacturing practices which it considered to be unethical in Primark's supply chain. Undercover reporters exposed child labour in three of India's garment factories sub-contracted by Primark. The BBC alerted Primark to their findings, to which Primark replied: "Under no circumstances would Primark ever knowingly permit such activities". Primark has since halted business with the mentioned suppliers, although this action was criticised by child protection groups as being irresponsible and likely to cause additional hardship to the labourers, arguing it would have been better to ensure working practices were turned around.
Stores
| Country |
Number of Stores |
IRL IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
|
34 (trading as 'Penneys') |
UK United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
|
125 |
Spain SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. [The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
|
11 |
Netherlands NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
|
1 |
Portugal PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
|
1 |
Germany GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
|
1 |
The company is planning to open a store in
LiègeLiège is a municipality and a city of Belgium. The term Liège or Liege may also refer to:* Liege, a party to the oath of allegiance in feudalism .* Liège Island, in the Antarctic...
,
BelgiumThe Kingdom of Belgium is a country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters, as well as those of other major international organizations, including NATO...
http://www.primarkbelgiumjobs.be/. The are rumours of openings in
SwitzerlandSwitzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 states named cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities...
and
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.3 million people in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west...
http://www.dowjones.de/site/2009/07/primark-founderceo-has-no-plans-to-leave-executive.html.
External links