Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF) has said that sales at the high street retailer plummeted by 75% over the past quarter due to the coronavirus lockdown.
The retail business saw sales dive to £582 million for the period to June 20 after it was forced to shut stores globally in the face of the virus.
ABF said only eight of its 375 stores have yet to reopen, while it has reported “encouraging” trade from those shops which have welcomed customers again.
In a statement, ABF said: “Consumer demand has been strong for children’s, leisure and night wear, along with summer products such as shorts and T-shirts, and unsurprisingly weak for formal menswear and travel-related accessories.
“As indicated in our update of June 1, most of our regional stores are performing well, especially in retail parks.
“Our stores in the centre of big cities are suffering from the current absence of tourism and much lower commuter footfall.
“Sales have been held back to some extent by a number of operating restrictions which vary by country but continue to evolve.”
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