Primark: number of manufacturing factories 2021, by country

Primark is one of the first brands that come to mind in fast fashion. An Ireland-based retailer of value clothing, Primark operates in 14 countries and owns around 400 stores worldwide, concentrated mostly in the United Kingdom (UK).

Supplier transparency in fast fashion

Primark’s global supply network became prominent in 2013 with the collapse of the Rana Plaza building, a garment supplier factory for Primark. Since then, more attention has been given to the health and safety and labour conditions of third-party suppliers for fast fashion companies, and Primark is one of the many other retailers that have become more transparent about their global sourcing practices. According to the most up-to-date data published on the retailer’s website, Primark works with 450 factories in China as of October 2021. In Bangladesh, there are 106 factories supplying clothing and accessories for the company.

Producing and selling more

Based on calculations made using average prices per unit in global fashion industry, in 2018 Primark sold around 989 million items. This placed Primark among the top four fast fashion retailers alongside with INDITEX, H&M, and Marks and Spencer.