Primark Expose: Store Secrets From a Former Employee

Ex-Primark employee Georgia Ponton, 20, revealed some of the clothing giant’s secrets. From where to find hidden stock to what items will go on sale after Christmas. The university student from Northamptonshire, UK, gave insider tips on how to maximize your shopping experience in the said store.

Here are some of them:

How and Where to Find Hidden Stock

When new releases arrive, she, along with other staff and shoppers, would pick their sizes and hide the pieces in strange locations in the store. You can then come back and get them when you want to. In some cases, customers forget about them, so you may want to look elsewhere if you can’t find your size.

Ponton says to hide choice pieces in the shop corners, lower racks, or the nightwear section.

They are the first to see the new arrivals, so she hides what she likes and comes back for them on her break.

What Goes on Sale After Christmas

After the Christmas holidays is when most stores go on sale. It’s a good idea to ask a Primark employee whether a specific item will go on sale after Christmas. Primark staff prepares for these sales, so they know in advance which items will be marked down.

If you think an item will soon go out of season, you can always ask a store supervisor. You can then decide if you want to buy or wait a while to make your purchase.

Never Replace Labels

Some customers try to cheat the system for want of a better deal on items they have their eyes on. They secretly remove the labels of cheaper items to stick on the pieces they like to buy. Not only does the staff know what’s on sale and what’s not, the prices of the items are scanned on their system. If the tag says on sale, but the scanner says it’s not, you will pay full price.

Switching Items

Ponton has seen customers switch their clothes with those from the store. They walk away and out of the shop thinking, Primark won’t notice. But they do, and Georgia has reported an incident to her supervisor.

The Meaning of the Bells

On rare occasions, you can hear three consecutive bells ringing while in the store. They have different meanings, but most of the time, it’s some sort of emergency. One ring means someone needs help on the cash register, two rings are for supervisors and managers, while three means an emergency.

Where the Items are in the Store

An item’s price tag contains more than just the price. It also shows the department it belongs to. This is handy in cases of finding an item you like but in a different section. If you want to know if a random clothing piece is for men or women, just look at the code.

Each department has a designated number, the women’s section has a 08 code at the start. Men’s wear is 07, homewares is 11, footwear is 07, and so on.