Forever 21 is about to get a serious dent in its Boston sales figures, now that Penneys has finally opened an outlet in the US city.

Primark USA launched today in Boston's Burnham Building, formerly the home of famous bargain store Filene's Basement.

The megastore opened just a couple of hours ago, with keen shoppers queuing for hours beforehand to get their fix of budget-friendly knickers, fluffy socks and slogan tees.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh officially welcomed the Irish company to the city's downtown area before cutting the ribbon.

Penneys provided a specially jazzed up pair of scissors, for that day that was in it:

Rather than paying for hordes of celebrities to associate themselves with the brand, Penneys kept things low-key and classy, going for edgy stars like Emily Ratajkowski and singer Tinashe instead of glitzy Z-listers.

Inside, the store looks fairly similar to any Penneys branch you'd find in Ireland:

Even the brown paper bags are the same… there will be a lot of homesick ex-pats today we reckon.

We definitely recognise that shoe display… Bostonians seem to REALLY like their suede heels.

The close US$/€ exchange rate means the prices aren't all that varied either, so we can't complain that the Boston shoppers are getting a better deal.

But given that this is Penneys' first American store, there had to be a FEW cool new features.

Like this phone charging area, for example:

And free WiFi… genius.

After a glam New York dinner last week in collaboration with fashion site Refinery 29, plus an in-store party last night for invited bloggers and journalists, there was even a cocktail bar set up in store today.

Okay, when is Club Primania (or Club Penmania) hitting the Emerald Isle?

We need to know.