I’m an ex-Primark worker – the best time to shop and the hours to avoid

AN ex-Primark worker has revealed some secrets of the high-street favourite, including the times to avoid shopping.

The affordable retailer is popular amongst savvy shoppers due to its low prices.

It’s good news for fans of the store, as a former employee has spilled the beans about the worst times to shop.

Georgia Pontin has been revealing her secrets and top tips after her time working at Primark.

The 22-year-old shares her stories on her TikTok account “pontasaurus”; to her 91.5k followers.

In a recent video for her “Primark secrets from someone who used to work there”; series, she has shared when the busiest time to visit a store is.

Georgia said: “Each store has a prime time which is their busiest hour.

“So, at the store that I worked at, our prime time was 2pm.

“And during that time anyone who wasn’t on break or lunch had to be downstairs on the shop floor.”;

She went on to say that because it got so busy, the workers would clear up as shoppers went along.

During this time it’s when the queue was the longest, so it’s probably best to try other times of the day.

Otherwise you could be stuck in long queues.

Georgia added that when the queue was really long she would be given a lollipop lady-style stick to keep it moving smoothly.

She said: “So, basically for an hour or until the queue got short, I had to stand at the end of the queue with a sign that said ‘Queue starts Here’ and that was my job.”;

It meant that she had to be skilled in making small talk with customers as she tried not to hit people accidentally with the stick.

Georgia’s video has been viewed over 50,000 times, as have most in the series.

Another ex-worker commented on the clip: “I was always mortified when I was give that stick.”;

While another said: “We used to call it 3pm rumble in Primark Manchester!”;

Georgia has shared dozens of other “secrets”; and “horror stories”; from her time working at the store.

Some other tips she has including that if you’re looking for the best items, you should check the back of the rails.

That’s because if it was a season change, the older bits would be put at the front so’s to shift the stock.

We’ve contacted Primark for comment on these tips and tricks and will update this story when we hear back.

To check when your local Primark’s busiest hours might be you can have a look on Google.

By typing in your closest store, the search engine will tell you typically how many people visit at what times.

For example, at the Brighton store there appears to be a peak at 2pm.

This will help you narrow down the best times to shop so you don’t get caught up in queues.

You can find your closest Primark using its handy locator tool on its website.

More tips shopping tips

Checking any shops busiest hours is a good way to know when to plan your next shopping trip.

You can do it for most high street brands and it could save you time in the queue.

Also, if you’ve got some time on your hands and don’t need to purchase an item right away, why not compare other retailers too.

It always pays to compare prices so you know you’re getting the best deal.

Prices can also vary day to day what deals are on at the time and remember you might pay for delivery you’re ordering online.

You can compare prices on websites like Google shopping.

Keep an eye on the season too, if a shop is about to transition from one range to another it might be good to hold off in case something you want is about to be discounted in a sale.

Meanwhile, Primark recently launched its latest clothing collection with bakery chain Greggs.

Plus, we tested out the store’s new self-checkout machines and shoppers will love them.