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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
National
Sophie Buchan

The way Primark 'tricks' customers into staying longer and spending more

There's a saying that you should never shop on an empty stomach because as we all know, we'll never end up sticking to our shopping list.

However, when it comes to clothes shopping the same can be applied - minus the empty stomach - and our bank account generally doesn't thank us for it.

At one point in our lives, everyone has walked into a shop, namely Primark, and walked out with way more than they actually need.

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So if you're one of the people who does this, there may actually be a very valid reason behind it.

According to The Sun, a psychologist has claimed the high street giant has some very clever tricks to persuade you to part with your cash.

Primark, who are said to serve over a million shoppers every day across their 400 worldwide stores, bring in a pretty hefty revenue of over £5 billion annually.

Speaking on the Channel 5 documentary Primark: How Do They Do It?, psychologist Dr Amna Khan discussed how the retailer tries to keep customers in store for as long as possible and likens it to visiting a "theme park where all your senses are activated", making you stay.

It is said on the show that Primark only buys large retail spaces and tries to add extra experiences like cafes and beauty services to tempt people to stay.

Consumer journalist Harry Wallop said: "It’s a phrase used in the retail industry as ‘dwell time’. You don't want people to just come in and buy an item and leave.

“You want someone to come in, look for the item, think ‘that looks like a nice café. I'll stop there, I’ll then buy something else’. On the way you spot another bit of homewares, it’s only £5.

“If you can increase the dwell time you are onto a winning formula and you have justified the high expense of operating a high street store.”

Jermaine Lapwood, head of Primark’s Innovation and Future trends, added: “We want people to explore all the amazing products that we have to offer. But at the same time we don’t want them to be inconvenienced.

“If they want to get a coffee or if the kids are starting to get frustrated, they can pop up to our Disney café.”

One thing that shoppers want is the ability to shop online - however with the retailer saying they won't be doing this, it forces shoppers to visit the store.

In addition to this, Primark relies on bloggers and influencers to promote their items with popular shopping hauls creating a hype over their clothes and the latest trends. While some people head in stores for the haul items, others stick to the basics.

Dr Amna added: “Primark’s essential components of their products are generally built on basic, staple products that don’t necessarily always change.”

Retail consultant Nicole Higgins continued: “Generally with clothing, 20 per cent of your range will make up 80 per cent of your sales.

“If you go into Primark’s lingerie department, they will have hundreds of styles, lots and lots of different colours but probably the items that are making the most amount of money are the five-pack knickers, the basic T-shirt bras.

“They are the core bread-and-butter products.”

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