Primark opens its 500th store worldwide in Pompeii
Next week it will be the turn of another large shop in Giugliano
The Italian flag is flying at Primark’s 500th store worldwide – the Irish chain specialises in family clothing, as well as beauty and homeware products. The store, which opened today in Pompeii at the La Cartiera shopping centre, covers an area of 3,160 square metres on a single level and has created over 150 jobs thanks to an investment of 8 million. ‘In Italia, the opening of the Pompeii store forms part of a wider investment plan that will bring Primark’s network to 28 shops over the coming years,’ reads a statement from the multinational. The openings of Primark Grande Sud and Primark Parma Promenade are scheduled for next week, confirming the company’s ongoing commitment to further strengthen its presence in the Italian market.”
“We are very proud. This is a very important date, not only for Primark Italia – as this is, in fact, our twenty-second shop – but also, and above all, because for Primark, ‘La Cartiera’ marks the 500th shop worldwide,” said Luca Ciuffreda, director of Primark Italia, during the opening ceremony. ‘We know that we will be opening other shops around the world this week,’ he continued, ‘but Primark decided to open here at La Cartiera as a mark of recognition for the Italian market and, indeed, for the local area. “We are already familiar with this area; we have already opened in Caserta and Salerno, and with ‘La Cartiera’ and, next week, ‘Grande Sud’, we will reach a total of over 700 colleagues.”
The majority of the staff are women, and the new store is also characterised by its internal career progression pathways. “The entire management team has come through the ranks internally,” adds Laura Finocchiaro, Head of People and Culture at Primark Italia, speaking on the sidelines of the opening – so a great many young people have chosen to relocate, develop their careers and come here to open this very shop, which is so important and significant to us, given that it is also our 500th shop worldwide. On the one hand, there are affordable prices; on the other, there are plenty of opportunities for employment, but above all for long-term growth and career progression.”
Within the La Cartiera shopping centre – a project resulting from the regeneration of the former Aticarta factory, which has retained its key distinctive features whilst renovating and redeveloping over 400,000 cubic metres to accommodate new functions – Primark is one of the anchor tenants alongside the Conad Superstore. Katrin Berling, centre manager of La Cartiera shopping centre, emphasises: ‘We are particularly proud that La Cartiera has been chosen to host Primark’s 500th store worldwide. This is a significant milestone which confirms the appeal of our centre and its ability to attract leading international brands. This opening represents an important step in La Cartiera’s growth and development and fulfils an expectation that many of our visitors have expressed to us over the years.”
A second large Primark store is set to open on 8 September at the Grande Sud Retail Park in Giugliano, in the province of Naples, as part of a development and regeneration project by Nhood. The Primark store covers an area of around 5,000 square metres and will be one of the complex’s main attractions, as well as a key element in the plan to enhance the centre.
