The Penney Does Not Drop
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COVID19 PRIMARK STRATEGY TACKLING / ANGELINA DIMITROVA SHUTTERSTOCK THE PENNEY DOES NOT DROP One of the largest fashion chains in Europe and the largest clothing, footwear and accessories retailer by volume in the UK, Irish fashion giant Primark reached the shores of the United States after consolidating itself in Western Europe. An analysis. FIBRE2FASHION 46% Till FY19, the sale numbers were growing steadily but 2020’s pandemic phase pulled them back to FY16 status while Primark’s contribution averaged at 46 per cent (FY16–20). 78% During Q1 this year, the retail space increased by 0.2 million sq ft with addition of five new stores. As of January 14, 2021, 78 per cent of all stores occupying 76 per cent of total retail space remained closed. By Sanjay Bakshi rimark’s founder Arthur Ryan opened the first store in the city of Dublin, Ireland on behalf of the Weston family which founded Associated British P Foods (ABF) in 1935. This etched Primark’s existence in ABF. Today, ABF is a diversified international group with sales of £13.9 billion. The group has operations in 53 countries across Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia; an employee force of 133,000 people; and owns more than 40 consumer brands, some of which sell in more than 100 countries. The group businesses are organised into five segments: grocery, sugar, agriculture, ingredients and retail backed by common industry expertise, operational capability and market knowledge. The group’s business model entrusts local heads and teams to take operational decisions with the corporate centre only providing a framework in which they FIBRE2FASHION COVID19 PRIMARK STRATEGY TACKLING / ALLARD ONE SHUTTERSTOCK have the freedom and decisionmaking TABLE 1 Primark Group: An Overview authority to pursue opportunities with ABF Group FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 entrepreneurial flair. This ensures Sale (£ bn) 13.4 15.4 15.6 15.8 13.9 decisionmaking stays close to the Profit (£ mn) 821 1,211 1,022 896 465 markets and customers, resulting in effective, innovative business solutions. Avg no of employees 1,29,916 1,32,590 1,37,014 1,38,097 1,33,425 The calibrated role of centre uses short % of female employees 48 48 51 52 53 lines of communication to ensure SOURCE: Company reports prompt, incisive and unambiguous decisionmaking. FIGURE 1 Primark’s share in ABF revenues ABF sales and profits respectively grew at a CAGR of 5.6 per cent and 3 ABF Group Primark per cent in pre-covid years (2016-19). The big groups often face the pressure to perform in challenging times and ABF 44% 46% 48% 49% 42% lived up to this expectation by retaining a positive CAGR of 0.9 per cent finishing up to FY20—the year disrupted by 56% 54% 52% 51% 58% covid. Till FY19, the sale numbers were growing steadily but 2020’s pandemic phase pulled them back to FY16 status FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 while Primark’s contribution averaged at 46 per cent (FY16–20). The group also failed to maintain an upward trend it had TABLE 2 Sales and Profits: Last 5 Years achieved in profits after FY17. It ended Primark FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY20 with a 3.3 per cent profit margin Sale (£ bn) 5.95 7.05 7.48 7.79 5.90 against an average of 5.9 per cent it had Profit (£ mn) 689 729 843 9131 148 achieved during the five-year period. No of countries 11 11 11 12 13 Primark retail No of employees 68,262 73,350 78,016 78,000 75,000 % of female employees 71 69 73 74 76 In 1969, Primark opened first store in Dublin under the name Penneys, a name SOURCE: Company reports; Primark’s FY has 52-weeks ending in mid-September 1ABF Group’s profit is less than Primark’s profit due to loss in Group’s another business segment that still continues to trade in Irish FIBRE2FASHION TIMELINE 1969: First store opens in Dublin (Ireland) 1973: First store opens in Derby (UK) 2000: 100th Primark store opens July 2005: Primark acquires Littlewoods stores May 2006: Store opens in Madrid (Spain) / SHAWNWIL23 / April 2007: Flagship store opens in Oxford Street, London (UK) December 2008: Store opens in SHUTTERSTOCK Rotterdam (The Netherlands) TABLE 3 Retail Expansion Over the Years December 2009: Stores open in Primark FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 Lisbon (Portugal), Bremen (Germany) and Liege (Belgium) No of stores 315 345 360 373 384 Retail space (sq ft '000) 12,342 13,862 14,805 15,642 16,247 July 2010: 200th Primark store opens Average store size (sq ft) 39,181 40,180 41,125 41,936 42,310 SOURCE: Company reports November 2011: Primark branded concessions open in Selfridges Birmingham & Manchester (UK) territory. However, the name cannot be presence and a high level of customer used outside the Republic of Ireland as engagement with 22 million followers July 2012: First store in Berlin it is registered by American retailer JC across its social media channels. (Germany) opens Penney. As of now, Primark is one of September 2012: First store opens the largest fashion retailers in Europe Success mantra in Austria and the largest clothing, footwear and More than half of products that Primark accessories retailer by volume in the UK. sells consist of essential ranges; so, December 2013: First store opens In total, Primark runs 384 stores maintaining quality is of utmost in France across 13 countries, including the US. importance for the retailer. Equally September 2015: First store opens Primark’s range includes womenswear, important is the role played by its in Boston (US) lingerie, kidswear, menswear, product teams which are capable of footwear, accessories, hosiery, beauty identifying and delivering key seasonal October 2015: Flagship store opens in Gran Via, Madrid (Spain) and homeware. The company has an trends at appropriate time. employee force of 75,000 people of A significant growth is also driven April 2016: First store opens in which about 73 per cent are women—a by licensed merchandise such as Disney Arese, Milan (Italy) share higher than the parent company. and Netflix, providing a segment April 2019: Primark’s biggest ever leadership position to the retailer. Add store opens in Birmingham (UK) Business model to that, the significant growth in beauty Primark’s business model keeps prices segment—one of Primark’s fastest June 2019: Store opens in Ljubljana low and offers the best value on the growing categories led by its own beauty (Slovenia) – overall 12th but first market in Central Eastern Europe high street. Low prices are achieved by brand PS—keeps encouraging teams to doing very little advertising and instead continue innovating and introducing August 2020: Store opens in focus on marketing through the Primark new products every season. Warsaw (Poland) – Primark’s 13th website, popular social media channels The retailer believes in staying market and store windows. Primark sells its ahead in the competition by offering products only through stores and makes distinguished in-store experience to its ample savings on things like simple customers that can be seen in many of packaging. its stores having free Wi-Fi and trend Primark delivers high quality rooms. Alongside, its stores in Ireland, affordable fashion accessible to everyone the UK, Spain and Portugal have coffee driven by ‘Amazing Fashion, Amazing shops, food and beverage offerings and Prices’. Although Primark is a brick-and- beauty concessions adding to the overall mortar retailer, it has a strong digital customer experience. FIBRE2FASHION COVID19 Business scenario 42,000 sq ft. By entering the US in 2015, Primark Primark continued making a mark by Despite growing, the annual growth reached the first continent outside growing at a CAGR of 9.4 per cent in rates of retail space kept on reducing Europe. As of FY20, the US hosts nine PRIMARK STRATEGY TACKLING sales and 9.8 per cent in profits between from 12 per cent in 2017 to 4 per cent Primark stores with an average store FY16 and FY19. With FY20, included in 2020. Overall, the expansion trend size of more than 52,000 sq ft. the respective CAGRs changed to (-) 0.2 has resulted in an average annual sale of per cent and (-) 31.9 per cent. The profit £18.9 million per store sliding down to COVID arrives margin that averaged at 11 per cent of £15.4 million at a CAGR of (-)5 per cent The covid-19 pandemic made all of sales between FY16 and FY19 dropped and monthly sale per sq ft also dropping Primark’s 375 operating stores shut to 9 per cent by FY20 due to a 3 per cent from £40 to £30 at a CAGR of (-)7 per down across 12 markets in March margin realisation on sales it generated cent. 2020. In April when governments during the fiscal. Primark is primarily a Europe- announced reopening schedules, The business operation remained centric retailer having its presence safeguarding employees and customers limited to the same eleven countries for concentrated in Western Europe. Its became topmost priority. Rightly so, all three consecutive years before adding retail presence pie is dominated by the safety advice from local governments, Slovenia and Poland by FY20 to the list UK with the largest number of stores considered the least possible standard to of countries where the brand operates. as well as retail space, contributing half be implemented, were followed strictly The addition of two new markets of both. However, its average store size along with company introduced SOPs. during peak of covid times ensured (39,679 sq ft) stands at the bottom of As scheduled, the stores opened Primark’s intent to expand.