Primark Continues International Expansion As It Confirms Its First Store In Romania

New flagship store set to open in Bucharest, later this year and will mark Primark’s entry into its 15th market

Primark, the international retailer, has today announced plans to launch in Romania with a new store planned to open in the capital city of Bucharest later this year, located at ParkLake Shopping Centre. The move is another significant milestone for the retailer in its ongoing expansion across Europe and the US.

The new store will mark Primark’s entry into a fourth Central Eastern European market following successful store openings across Slovenia, Poland and the Czech Republic in recent years, where the brand’s unique formula of fashion, homewares and beauty at great value prices has proved extremely popular.

Primark, an Irish retail brand, was founded in Dublin, Ireland more than 50 years ago and now has over 400 stores across 14 markets, offering customers everyday value essentials and fashion favourites at Primark’s famous affordable prices. This includes its extensive selection of license partnerships such as the NBA and Disney, and Primark’s growing range of products made from more sustainable materials under its Primark Cares label.

Primark CEO, Paul Marchant said: “We are delighted to be continuing with our expansion plans and moving into Romania for the first time with a fantastic location secured in a popular shopping centre in the east of Bucharest. The response from customers in the CEE region to Primark has been really positive and we’re looking forward to continuing to grow and hope to open our doors to the people of Romania by the end of the year.”

Cristina Santos, Managing Director for Property Management at Sonae Sierra added: “We are very excited to be part of Primark’s continued expansion journey in CEE. The opening of Primark in ParkLake, is the result of our efforts to provide visitors an impressive shopping experience with iconic concepts. Featuring dynamic offerings including retail, dining and entertainment, ParkLake is the perfect location for Primark’s first store in Romania”.

The expansion into Romania demonstrates Primark’s continued investment and commitment to the CEE market, with plans already in motion to secure a second store in the country. In addition, the retailer has committed to another four stores in Poland including two new stores in the cities of Lodz and Wroclaw. It also plans to enter Slovakia early next year with a store in Bratislava – which would become the 16th market for Primark after Romania.

Building on the successful opening of 15 stores in the last financial year, the growth of the store portfolio in CEE is part of Primark’s ongoing wider group expansion. Last year, Primark unveiled plans to accelerate the pace of expansion in the US market, building on strong trading and a growing brand awareness with the aim of achieving some 60 stores in the next five years. Primark also expects to grow its footprint in France, Italy and Iberia to take its total store estate to 530 stores in the five-year period.

About Primark

Primark is an international retailer that offers customers the latest fashion, beauty and homeware at great value prices. Founded in Ireland in 1969 under the Penneys brand, Primark today has over 400 stores across 14 countries in Europe and North America and employs more than 70,000 people. Primark is working to make more sustainable fashion affordable for everyone and is focused on giving clothing a longer life, protecting life on the planet and improving the lives of people who make Primark products. As part of this it has unveiled a series of commitments it is working to achieve by 2030. These include making all its clothes from recycled or more sustainably sourced materials, ensuring clothing is recyclable by design, halving carbon emissions across the value chain, removing single-use plastic and pursuing a living wage for workers in the supply chain. You can find out about these commitments and more here.

About Sonae Sierra

Sonae Sierra is a property company and full real estate services provider, globally active in Europe, South America, Asia and North Africa. As the partner of choice, we create shared value for our business and society, applying our unique know-how to offer world-class solutions - including investment management, architecture and engineering, asset management, leasing and sustainability services - covering the entire real estate life cycle.

Sonae Sierra has 4 development projects and 1 expansion currently underway and approximately € 8 billion in assets under management, for which it provides property-level services. The company also manages 12 investment vehicles for institutional or retail investors, worth €5 billion in OMV.

For more information, visit www.sonaesierra.com