Primark parent ABF finance director John Bason told Retail Week that he expected the value fashion powerhouse’s appeal through bricks-and-mortar stores to continue after it comes out of UK lockdown in a fortnight’s time.

He said that despite not having an online business that could have traded when stores were shut during the pandemic, at a cost in lost sales of £650m a week, launching an ecommerce operation was “not a priority”.