Inaaya Khan is surrounded by choice at the Westfield London shopping mall.
It’s a Thursday lunchtime, and the 20-year-old student has emerged from Primark clutching one of its trademark brown paper shopping bags – and now the budget clothing retailer’s rivals are catching her eye.
"The price has definitely gone up,” said Khan, whose Primark purchase was matching pajamas with her friend, Klea. "Stuff that I buy now is about £20 (approximately RM105), before it would have been £12 (RM63) or £13 (RM68).”
Her spending habits have shifted as a result. For the cheapest prices, Khan goes online to Shein; for something higher quality, a jump to H&M or Zara now doesn’t feel so big, she said.
Khan shows the squeeze facing Primark just as owner Associated British Foods Plc considers splitting it from the conglomerate, testing its standalone appeal.
After years of looking unassailable in budget fashion, the timing suddenly looks less than ideal.
AB Foods – controlled by the billionaire Weston family – is weeks away from a self-imposed deadline to decide whether to break up a business that dates back to 1935 and has long lauded the benefit of it
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