Spanish fashion firm looks to further expand in China

Inditex, owner of eight fashion brands including Zara and Massimo Dutti, aims to continue to expand its presence in China through store reinforcement and to strengthen its digital connections with local consumers through innovations.

During a visit to Beijing recently, Inditex's Chairman and CEO Pablo Isla said the company is expected to open a Zara flagship store in the city's prime location of Wangfujing Street by the end of this year or early next year.

The move is part of the company's ongoing strategy to make Zara stores larger, offering more in-store experiences.

Meanwhile, the company has also relied on technology to improve its digital operations, such as developing applications and websites for its retail brands to connect digitally with consumers, especially at places without the presence of its brick-and-mortar stores.

In 2018, Zara updated its website image and mobile app, adding features that facilitate browsing and zooming in on specific trends.

Inditex introduced next-day delivery service in China by working with JD Delivery. The company is working toward having same-day delivery available in all major cities around the world.

The Spanish clothing company currently has more than 600 stores in the country. Of them, 57 are located in the capital city. Isla said Beijing is the first city to complete the group's eco-efficient store program, which has saved 46 million kilowatt-hours since 2015.

The CEO said the company has developed a scheme for collecting used clothing when delivering online orders. It also worked with the China Environmental Protection Foundation on the Closing the Loop program for the collection of secondhand clothing in the group's stores in Beijing and in another 180 stores around China.

Meanwhile, Inditex signed an agreement with Tsinghua University's School of Economics and Management (SEM) to increase the endowment for scholarships for MBA students at Tsinghua SEM.

In fiscal year 2018, Inditex achieved net sales reaching 26.1 billion euros, with growth of 3 percent.