Zara
Zara sales increased by 18% in 2012, up to €10,541 million. During this year, the main chain in the Inditex Group began to operate in five new markets: Armenia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Ecuador and Georgia. Zara thus opened a total of 120 stores, reaching 1,925 stores in 86 markets.
2012 has also been the year in which Zara premiered its new store concept. This innovative interior design was presented at the brand’s 666 Fifth Avenue store in New York. The new image revolves around the principles of beauty, clarity, functionality and sustainability. The store turns around two long axes, hallways, or "walkways", leading to individualised spaces or "cubes" on each side, in which the various collections are shown in an individualised way. The wood of the furniture has been finished in textures that are reminiscent of fabrics such as linen or silk, in elegant and neutral colours. In addition, with regard to sustainability, the store is in line with the guidelines governing the Inditex Group's eco-efficient stores.
This same renewed concept also governs another one of the stores located in a prominent location: Park House, on 460-490 Oxford Street (London). The fourth store of the chain on the British capital's main shopping street is, in addition, Inditex's store no. 6,000. A few days later, another outstanding Zara store would open to the public on no. 92, Champs Elysées, Paris. Another relevant milestone in the extension of the new concept was the opening of a new Zara store in the central Neuhauser Strasse in Munich.
In addition, Zara has taken a new step in the gradual expansion of e-commerce to all the markets in which it operates with the opening of its online store in China, www.zara.cn. As a result, Zara now operates online in 21 countries.
In the area of sustainability, the brand’s Melbourne store obtained LEED Gold certification, the most demanding in the field of sustainable architecture, granted by the US Green Building Council. This seal acknowledges sustainable and eco-efficient construction.
