Good Christmas for Primark, not so good for Currys and Argos

Overall, it has been a dismal Christmas for many retailers with thousands of job losses and companies going bust amid the economic downturn.

Discount fashion chain Primark has bucked the trend and announced a successful festive period with sales increasing by 21% in the 16 weeks to 3 January.

Primark’s owner, Associated British Foods, said Christmas sales had exceeded expectations.

Primark has 187 stores globally and is the UK’s second-largest clothing retailer by sales volume after Marks and Spencer (M&S).

M&S recently announced a 7.1% decline in UK like-for-like sales in the 13 weeks to the end of December.

As shoppers look to tighten their purse strings, discount chains such as Primark have been performing well. Just last week, Peacocks, fellow discount fashion retailer, said sales were 22% higher than a year ago and is embarking on an expansion plan over the next two years.

However, the news was not so good at DSG International, which owns Currys and PC World, who said like-for-like sales (which exclude new stores) fell 10% in the 3 months to 10 January.

Furthermore, Home Retail Group (HRG), which runs the Argos and Homebase chains, said like-for-like sales at Argos had fallen 7.5% in the 18 weeks to 3 January, while in the same period, Homebase like-for-like sales fell 10.2%.

Furniture and DIY chains have been hit particularly hard as a result of the downturn in the housing market, a lack of buyers has resulted in low demand at these types of stores.

In the last year alone, furniture and furnishings retailers including Ilva, Rosebys and Beds Direct have all collapsed, while Land of Leather entered administration earlier this week.

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