Primark is poised to reopen stores across the UK with bosses busy preparing branches to open once lockdown restrictions are lifted.
The discount fashion retailer Primark has suffered more than most from the coronavirus trading curbs, building up mountains of unsold stock, because it does not operate an online operation.
But it is now working to open its doors as soon as possible when it gets the go-ahead with store managers visiting sites last week to complete administrative work, reports the LiverpoolEcho.
However, Primark told the Mirror it would not reopen until it was sure staff and customers could visit safely.
A spokesman for Primark said: "Nothing matters more to us than the health and wellbeing of our employees and customers.
"That is why we will only reopen our stores in the UK once we are convinced that it is safe and right to do so.
"We are closely following all safety advice from government and will treat this as the minimum standard across all our stores.”
Last month Primark revealed it had as much as £1.5billion worth of unsold stock in its warehouses, with experts predicting a huge sale when stores open their doors again.
Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Sophie Lund-Yates said: "This could mean bumper sales when shops reopen, as sales stickers are one of the quickest ways to shift excess items."
But bosses at the chain are adamant that doors will only open to the public again when it is safe - no matter the cost to the company.
George Weston, chief executive of Primark parent company AB Foods, said: "Much as I would love to be allowed to reopen Primark stores across the UK, continental Europe and the USA soon, because lockdown has so harmed our business and our supply chains, I know that we must not do so until we have suppressed this disease.
"When we are allowed to reopen we must make our Primark stores safe for our staff and our customers, even if that means ensuring there are fewer people shopping at any one time and so accepting lower sales at least until the remaining risk is minimal."
He added: "In time we can rebuild the profits. We can't replace the people we lose."
