Primark, the budget fashion chain being spun off from Associated British Foods, will launch home delivery in Britain, the group said today, ending its long-standing resistance to direct-to-consumer online sales.
The FTSE 100 group, which confirmed in April that it would demerge Primark from its food businesses next year, already offers a Click & Collect service in Britain but has long resisted home delivery, saying it did not make economic sense with its low price points.
Primark trades as Penneys here.
“Primark’s digital maturity, including the success of Click & Collect, and online market developments, mean there is now the opportunity for profitable growth through the home delivery channel,” AB Foods said in a statement.
To enable this, Primark has acquired a highly automated fulfilment facility in Sheffield, it added.
AB Foods CEO George Weston told analysts he was not giving a timetable for home delivery’s introduction.
AB Foods, whose shares are down 10% over the last year, said work on the demerger is progressing well and is expected to be completed in December 2027.
The group said Primark’s like-for-like sales are expected to fall 3% in its fourth quarter to September 12, with the UK and Ireland up 0.4% but continental Europe down 4.3%.
“Trading in continental Europe remained challenging, where actions to strengthen our customer proposition are at an earlier stage,” Weston said.
The group’s food businesses include grocery brands such as Ovaltine, Ryvita and Twinings, as well as major sugar, agriculture and ingredients units.
Grocery sales are expected to grow in the “mid-single digits” in the fourth quarter, with ingredients sales up about 10%.
In sugar, sales and profitability declined in the UK and Spain due to lower average selling prices in Europe.
Sugar losses for the full 2025-26 financial year are expected to be at the higher end of the group’s previous guidance range of £25-60m.
AB Foods shares were down 9% in early trading, reflecting Primark’s subdued trading and the losses for sugar.
The group forecast adjusted operating profit for the 2025-26 fiscal year broadly in line with its previous expectations, with adjusted earnings per share ahead of its previous assumptions.
Its initial view for 2026-27 is for progress in most of its businesses, except sugar and the impact of integrating the recently acquired Hovis bread brand on grocery. Sugar losses were forecast at £70m to £170m.
The group remains cautious on consumer sentiment as well as the impact of inflation and higher energy costs.
