The future of a popular low budget retail outlet in Perth has been cast in to doubt due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The Primark store on High Street may have closed its shutters for the last time this week as its operational company scrambles to save cash following nationwide closures.
Associated British Foods, which owns the fast fashion retailer, has refused to pay £33 million in rent to its landlords after the closure of its 189 UK stores.
The payment, which was due on Wednesday, was meant to cover rent and service charges for two thirds of its 189 UK stores over the next three months.
Associated British Foods is withholding the cash as it tries to negotiate a deal that might offset the financial hit caused by the UK lockdown.
Primark, which does not sell online, has shut its 376 sites across 12 countries until further notice and it estimates that for every month of closures, it stands to lose about £650m in net sales.
A Primark spokesperson said earlier this week: “These are exceptionally difficult times and, like many retail businesses, we are looking closely at options to mitigate the significant impact of lost sales due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
“Given that all our stores are closed for the foreseeable future, we are asking our landlords to support us by agreeing terms that will help offset some of the impact.
“We hugely value our relationships with our landlords and we look forward to resuming our normal trading relationships as soon as possible when our stores reopen.”
