The Irish clothing retailer Primark, which belongs to the conglomerate Associated British Foods, is closing two stores in Germany.
The sites in Weiterstadt and Berlin Schlossstraße are affected by the closure, as confirmed by Primark at the request of FashionUnited. The specialist magazine Textilwirtschaft reported on it beforehand. The lease of the store in Weiterstadt in southern Hesse ends on January 31, 2023 and that of the Berlin Schlossstrasse location on April 30, 2023. Both contracts will not be extended.
In connection with the expiring contracts, Primark determined during “routine site reviews” that the two sites are “no longer commercially attractive” for the company.
“Primark is always striving to give our customers the best shopping experience. To ensure this, we regularly review the attractiveness of our locations, including routinely when lease extensions are due,” says Primark.
The employees of the branches were informed by the company about the closures. Primark is currently working with employee representatives to find “the best possible solutions”.
Primark drives expansion outside of Germany
The Irish textile retailer has 30 locations in Germany and more than 400 in total. There will continue to be three locations in the greater Berlin area – Alexanderplatz, Zoom Berlin and Gropius Passagen. For customers from Weiterstadt, the locations in Frankfurt on the Zeil shopping street and in the north-west center are nearby.
In the current Primark expansion plans, however, Germany does not seem to be a special focus. The Primark parent company Associated British Foods Plc (ABF) plans to increase the number of Primark locations to 530 over the next five years. The “particular focus” is on the USA, France, Italy and the Iberian region, explained ABF in an interim report for the half-year figures for the 2021/22 financial year.