Primark has announced a major €40 million investment programme, including the refurbishment of 11 stores and the opening of a new one in Spain, but its four stores in the Canary Islands are not currently included in the plans.

The fashion retailer is making the investment as it celebrates 20 years in the Spanish market, with the company focusing increasingly on modernising its existing stores as well as expanding its network.

The refurbishments will introduce Primark's latest store concept, including redesigned layouts, updated décor and new technology such as self-service checkouts.

However, none of Primark's four stores in Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote feature among the 11 locations selected for refurbishment.

This does not mean that Primark is planning to close stores or reduce its presence in the Canary Islands, nor does it rule out investment at a later date. It simply means that, based on the plans announced so far, the Islands are not included in this particular €40 million investment programme.

Where are Primark's Canary Islands stores?

Primark currently operates four stores across three of the Canary Islands.

Gran Canaria has two: one at Las Arenas Shopping Centre in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and another at El Mirador Shopping Centre, near Jinámar.

In Tenerife, Primark operates from the Meridiano Shopping Centre in Santa Cruz, while its Lanzarote store is located in Arrecife.

All four remain listed as operating stores by the company, and Primark has not announced plans for a fifth Canary Islands location as part of its current expansion programme.

Eleven stores being refurbished across mainland Spain

The €40 million investment will see Primark refurbish stores in Albacete, Algeciras, Cartagena, Cornellà de Llobregat, Fuengirola, Pamplona, Roquetas de Mar, Santander, Santiago de Compostela, Vitoria-Gasteiz and Zaragoza.

Some of the work had already been completed when the investment programme was formally announced, including refurbishments in Albacete, Algeciras, Fuengirola and Pamplona.

The upgrades are about more than simply giving stores a new look.

Primark plans to improve internal layouts, update décor and introduce technological changes intended to modernise the shopping experience, including self-service tills.

Primark opening its 68th Spanish store

The investment also includes a new Primark store at Los Alfares Shopping Centre in Talavera de la Reina, which will become the retailer's 68th location in Spain and its second in the province of Toledo.

The expansion comes exactly two decades after Primark entered the Spanish market with its first store at the Plenilunio Shopping Centre in Madrid.

The retailer has since grown substantially and currently operates 67 stores across Spain, employing more than 10,000 people.

Primark's wider strategy in Spain is also evolving. Having spent years expanding into new cities and regions, the company is now placing greater emphasis on reinvesting in and modernising stores it already operates.

There is therefore still the possibility that the Canary Islands stores could be included in future refurbishment programmes.

For now, shoppers in the Islands will continue to have the same four Primark stores, while customers will have to wait to see whether the new-look format and self-service checkouts being rolled out elsewhere in Spain eventually make their way to the Canaries.