...apparel, footwear, and accessories for women, men and children through its chains around the world. Zara is the largest and most internationalized of the six retailers that Inditex owns: (Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, and Oysho). Zara is one of the leading retail garments chain in Europe. Their main competitors are Gap and H&M, and together they form a group of speciality chains in the apparel industry. Zara has operated and adopted a different strategy as compared to Gap and H&M and the following points draw the difference between the players. 1. Vertical Integration: Traditionally the global apparel industry is highly labor intensive rather than capital intensive. Hence outsourcing production to developing countries with low labor rates to lower costs is a common trend amongst the big retailers. The same strategy is followed by Gap and H&M. In contrast, Zara has developed a successful diverse method of doing business in the fashion industry by working through the whole value chain. Zara manufactures 60% of its own products and is able to be flexible in the variety, amount, and frequency of the new styles they produce. In fact the whole line of most fashion sensitive products is produced internally (comprising around 50% of the total manufacturing) and in small batches for the most time-sensitive ones. 2. Distribution System: Zara has one centralized distribution centre compared to H&M and Gap, which have distribution centres in all...
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...world's largest fashion retailers by owning eight brands - Zara, Pull & Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home and Uterque. There are over 6,700 stores worldwide. It is started as textiles maker by Amancio Ortega Gaona in a small workshop back in 1963. After 12 years, Inditex is official a dressmaker when the first Zara store is established in 1975, located in La Coruña, Spain. The main goal of Inditex is to offer highest quality products to all its customers. All Inditex processes are following their code of conduct where 4 main principle is applied. There are clear to wear and safe to wear, tested to wear, green to wear and right to wear. These are the foundations of the Group's environmental and sustainable strategy. To ensure the stability of the global operation, Inditex has 11 logistics centre for each of the brands to make sure the merchandise are distributed twice a week. There are new designs are coming out once a fortnight in Inditex. It is also one of the company that practicing fast fashion. In 2014, the net profit of Inditex had grown 5 percent to 2.5 billion euro (Spain. Inditex S.A.,2014). Inditex is maintaining the aggressive strategy in 2015. Alexander's (2015) article indicates that, Ortega's net worth hit $80 billion as stock in his holding company Industria de Diseno Textil (Inditex) reached an all-time high of 33.99 Euros per share. As mentioned above, the first Zara store is opened in La Coruña in 1975. In 2014, 64% of the...
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...I – Company Profile (ZARA: The Technology Giant of the Fashion Word) Historical Background Zara is the flagship chain store of Inditex Group owned by Spanish tycoon Amancio Ortega. The first Zara store opened in 1975 at A Coruna, Spain. Its first store featured low-priced lookalike products of popular, higher-end clothing fashions. The store proved to be a success, and Ortega started opening more Zara stores in Spain. During the 1980s, Ortega started changing the design, manufacturing and distribution process to reduce lead times and react to new trends in a quicker way, in what he called "instant fashions" or “fast fashion”. The company based its improvements in the use of information technologies and using groups of designers instead of individuals. In 1988, the company started its international expansion through Porto, Portugal. In 1989 they entered the United States and in 1990 France. This international expansion was increased in the 1990s, with Mexico (1992), Greece (1993), Belgium and Sweden (1994), etc. until the current presence in over 70 countries. Zara stores are company-owned, except where local legislation forbids foreigner-owned businesses. In those cases, Zara franchises the stores. III – Questions for Discussion 1. As completely as possible, sketch the supply chain for Zara from raw materials to consumer purchase. - Zara makes about 40% of their raw material (fabric). The remaining 60% is outsourced from within Spain, mostly from the...
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...Zara: IT for fast fashion Case Analysis The case for Zara shows a simple method of "if it's not broken, and works for us, then we'll use it" mentality. This case views Zara's business strategies and how IT supports their business decisions. Zara is in the clothing apparel business, owned by Inditex (Industria de Diseno Textil), which is a holding company that owns Zara and other retail chains. In their business model, Zara focused on three things: (1) responding quickly to customer demands and fashion trends, (2) decentralizing decision making, hence allowing store managers to make decisions about clothes and trends for each specific store, and (3) provide customers with clothing that is "trendy" and not mainstream. Zara continuously provides new clothing lines throughout the year, introducing approximately 11,00 new items, whereas their competitors averaged around 2,000-4,000 items per year. Zara focuses on a specific customer base that is loyal to their clothing. Their customers know that if an item is in the store, then they will have to purchase it right then and there, otherwise it will not be available later. Zara's clothing is not designed to be sturdy, as they are intended to be only worn 10 times, to keep up with fashion and trends. Therefore, the typical Zara customer visits their stores on average 17 times per year. As for Zara's IT structure, they implement their technology to complement each process of their trendy business and decentralized company...
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...Zara Zara is one of the world’s most successful and dynamic apparel businesses. It is the flagship of Inditex, a vertically integrated retail and manufacturing group based in Galicia in north-west Spain. The first Zara store opened in the city of La Coruna in 1975, the brain child of Amanico Ortega, owner of a small clothing factory. Ortega was looking for a better way to run his business, one which would avoid the inefficiency of making clothes that might not sell. In the intervening decades more than 600 Zara stores – most owned directly by the company – have opened throughout Spain and 43 other countries worldwide. Zara produces and sells highly fashionable apparel for men, women and children, but its core customers are fashion conscious 18 – 35 year-old women. It offers them the very latest design trends at affordable mass-market prices. Physical product quality is good enough to see out the season, but not necessarily longer. By then the same customers will have moved on to the next “hot” look. The customers are loyal, frequent shoppers who visit a Zara store on average 17 times per year. To retain their interest, stock is constantly varied and updated. New deliveries arrive on a twice weekly basis. Few products are available in store for more than a month, adding a sense of exclusivity and urgency to buy. The stores themselves are sited in fashionable prestige locations; their interiors are smart, fresh, modern and regularly refurbished to retain their contemporary...
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...Jeff Bolling MKTG 310 I 28 Apr 2011 WK 5 Zara Case Study 1. As completely as possible, explain the supply chain for Zara -- from raw materials to consumer purchase. 5 pts. Zara makes 40% of its own fabrics and produces more than half of its own clothes. Work that has to be contracted out is done by local companies to maximize time efficiency. Zara stocks all raw materials/ fabric, cuts its own fabric and contracts the sewing to local companies. By stocking the raw material, Zara cuts down on time for getting end product to consumers. Having all this material and labor done locally to include stocking end product and shipping via jets, to distant locations and by truck to local locations, has streamlined the logistical process for Zara and is a role model for new businesses. 2. Discuss the concepts of horizontal and vertical conflict as they relate to Zara. 4 pts. Horizontal conflict is conflict that occurs among firms at the same level as opposed to vertical conflict which occurs between different levels of the same channel. Zara has minimal vertical conflict due to headquarters receiving data from individual stores where 300 professionals carry out the designs. Individual store managers spot trends, send data to Zara headquarters and "shazaam" a new design is on the market sometimes in less than two weeks. This is a prime example of teamwork at its best and shows in Zara's bottom line profits. Zara's approach to design is closely linked to their customers...
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...Zara Case Study Fast Fashion Zara’s success story begins by offering a product range capable of catering for men, women and children, providing affordable and stylish clothes whatever the season. Coupled with this, is their keen eye for discovering new fashion trends and translating these trends from the catwalk to the high street, both quickly and affordably. Zara boasts a marketing strategy of firstly product variety with a focal point of ensuring speed to market (Capell). At present, Zara launch 10,000 new articles per year across their portfolio of stores. Finally, store location, as any marketing is left to store location rather than advertising. Opting for a strategy of minimal advertising provokes the consumer into having to visit their stores. Zara is the most profitable brand of Inditex SA, accounting for 75% of the overall profit. Zara has remained focused on its core fashion philosophy that creativity and quality design together with a rapid response to market demands will yield profitable results. One of Zara’s many approaches is fast fashion. A contemporary term used by fashion retailers to acknowledge that designs move from catwalk to store in the fastest time (2weeks!) to capture current trends in the market. This "fast fashion" system depends on a constant exchange of information throughout every part of Zara's supply chain—from customers to store managers, from store managers to market specialists and designers, from designers to production staff, from buyers...
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...THE CASE OF ZARA: PLANNING AND STRATEGIC CONTROL Alexandra Iacob University of Huelva HUELVA, SPAIN 2015 Abstract Zara is a retail company belonging to the Spanish company Inditex Group. Currently, Zara has 1,808 stores in 86 countries. This paper will analyse Zara’s business model, based on innovation and flexibility, as well as logistics chain and the various tools used to recognize the continuous changes in fashion trends and turn them into a product marketable within a few weeks. Compared with the competition, Zara has three distinctions: vertical integration to achieve a faster turnaround time; rapid expansion; and use of the store as the main tool for promotion, with low spend on advertising. This company offered a product design and quality, low price. In addition, resources and competences have allowed develop a different business model, where all processes from product design, to manufacturing, distribution and sales are carried out within the same organization. Key words: Strategic Management, Strategy, External Environment, Michael Porter’s Generic Strategies, Vertical Integration, Balanced Scorecard, Globalization Culture Introduction Company Background Four letters that make up a fashion brand known around the world. Zara is a Spanish brand of clothing and accessories and the foundation of Inditex’s success as well as their first retail format. Inditex S.A. is a Spanish multinational group of textile manufacturing and distribution established in 1975 in...
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...Number | Contents | Page | 1. | Introduction to ZaraHistory & Company BackgroundCompany Profile | 23 | 2. | Case Summary : ZARA The technology Giant of the Fashion World | 7 | 3. | Discussion: Question 1Question 2Question 3Question 4Question 5Question 6 | 899101010 | 4. | Conclusion | 11 | 5. | Reference list | 11 | History and Background of Zara Marked as the first prestigious venture of the Inditex group the first store of Zara, the chain of Spanish fashion stores came into reality on central A Coruña Street in 1975. In 1985, Amancio Ortega integrated Zara in a new holding company, Industria de Diseño Textil, INDITEX S.A. The Zara fashion concept was well received by the public later in 1976, allowing it to expand its network of stores to the other main Spanish cities. During 1981-1988 with the growing popularity Zara started new ventures by multiplying in number not just in Spain but around the world. Today Zara is present in 73 countries, with a network of more than 1,540 stores, ideally located in major cities. Its international presence clearly shows that national frontiers are no impediment to sharing a single fashion culture (fibre2fashion.com, 2011). Today Zara is the largest and most internationalized of the six retailers that Inditex owns which are Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, and Oysho (www.zara.com/company, 2011). The role of the corporate centre at Inditex’s headquarters is that of a “strategic controller” only...
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...9-703-497 REV: DECEMBER 21, 2006 PANKAJ GHEMAWAT JOSÉ LUIS NUENO ZARA: Fast Fashion Fashion is the imitation of a given example and satisfies the demand for social adaptation. . . . The more an article becomes subject to rapid changes of fashion, the greater the demand for cheap products of its kind. — Georg Simmel, “Fashion” (1904) Inditex (Industria de Diseño Textil) of Spain, the owner of Zara and five other apparel retailing chains, continued a trajectory of rapid, profitable growth by posting net income of € 340 million on € revenues of € 3,250 million in its fiscal year 2001 (ending January 31, 2002). Inditex had had a heavily € oversubscribed Initial Public Offering in May 2001. Over the next 12 months, its stock price increased by nearly 50%—despite bearish stock market conditions—to push its market valuation to € 13.4 € billion. The high stock price made Inditex’s founder, Amancio Ortega, who had begun to work in the apparel trade as an errand boy half a century earlier, Spain’s richest man. However, it also implied a significant growth challenge. Based on one set of calculations, for example, 76% of the equity value implicit in Inditex’s stock price was based on expectations of future growth—higher than an estimated 69% for Wal-Mart or, for that matter, other high-performing retailers.1 The next section of this case briefly describes the structure of the global apparel chain, from producers to final customers. The section that follows profiles three of Inditex’s...
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...Caso Zara Rapid Fire Fulfillment Introducción - Zara se fundó en base a una cancelación de orden por un distribuidor mayorista en 1975 - Zara ahora cuenta con 650 tiendas en 50 paises - Entre 1991 y 2003, Inditex, registro un aumento en sus ventas de 12%, y en sus utilidades en 14% - El fundador trabaja bajo la filosofía de “controlar todo lo relacionado con el producto desde su fabricación hasta la compra final del cliente” - Tiempo de entrega por prenda nueva (Diseño, producción y entrega): 15 días - Estrategia de Negocio: Ofrecer prendas de moda confeccionada con materiales y costos bajos. - Prácticas actuales de manejo SCM: o Produce 50% de sus prendas internamente o No utiliza el 100% de su capacidad, mantiene capacidad extra para eventualidades o No utiliza economía de escalas (grandes lotes, costos bajos) ▪ Lotes pequeños, alta variedad o Diseña, Almacena, Distribye y realiza todas las actividades logísticas por su cuenta o Las operaciones tampoco son convencionales - Principios básicos de operación de Inditex: o Canales de comunicación fluidos y eficientes o Ritmo de trabajo constante a través de cadena de suministros o Aprovechamiento de sus Activos - Canales de comunicación fluidos y eficientes o Punto crítico de la industria “Moda Rápida”: Alta velocidad de intercambio de información...
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...Chapter 3 Zara: Fast Fashion from Savvy Systems Chapter Introduction This chapter focuses on how Zara, the clothing giant, was able to dominate the retail fashion industry through its use of technology. Zara’s approach defies every aspect of conventional wisdom in fashion retail, yet it has managed to create a winning formula. The chapter describes the manner in which technology has permeated design, sales, manufacturing, logistics, and distribution functions at Zara allowing it to become “the most innovative and devastating retailer in the world.” 1. Introduction o Understand how Zara’s parent company Inditex leveraged a technology-enabled strategy to become the world’s largest fashion retailer. Section Outline • The blend of technology-enabled strategy that Zara has unleashed seems to break all of the rules in the fashion industry. o The firm shuns advertising and rarely runs sales. o Unlike the other players, Zara is highly vertically integrated. o Inditex Corporation, the parent company of Zara, is now the world’s largest fashion retailer. 1.1 Why Study Zara? • Zara has entered many countries and its profitability is among the highest in the industry. • Zara’s products are fashionable but are comparatively inexpensive. • It is important to understand how counterintuitive and successful Zara’s strategy is, and how technology makes all of this possible. 1.2 Gap: An Icon in Crisis • In retail, having too much unwanted products (inventory) on hand will...
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...Zara offers competitive advantages over its competition by: • Offering new styles throughout the year rather than just the standard times of spring/summer and winter/fall. Zara introduces roughly 11,000 new styles throughout the year compared to the competitors who average 2,000 – 4,000 items. • Creating customer demand for product by ever changing store inventory and having fast turnovers, this creates a sense of urgency for the customer. If they do not buy it now they may not have another chance. Zara stores turnover 75% every three to four weeks. • Empowering store managers who are the ones most suitable to react to changing trends. The corporate structure gives great power to the managers in allowing them to choose which items go on sale, and when as well as specifically ordering items that they determine to be large movers. • La Caruno store operates as a trial store to trends. The commercials are able to unroll new designs and trends and test them as a form of live, real time market research. From these findings they are able to adjust production rates, quantities and control the flow of goods throughout Zara’s distribution channels. The increase in profitability from the proposed action item will resolve in recording positive margins by Year two of the rollout and record net income profits, before additional IT expenses by Year four at €12 MN As the manager I would implement a trial Windows POS system in three Zara stores. I would focus on three stores that have...
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...Zara Case 1. What are the ways that Inditex ensures that “fast fashion” is truly fast? The primary drive behind “fast fashion” for Zara and more importantly its CEO Pablo Isla is logistics. The company produces two thirds of its product in nearby location such as Spain, Portugal, and Turkey, thus ensuring significant savings on transportation costs along with significantly faster delivery times. Aside from delivery times, Mr. Isla has installed sophisticated system of monitoring sales and ordering merchandise. Stores are restocked as often as twice a week, and merchandise reaches the store within two days of the order. The fashion is monitored very closely, and those items that are successful are quickly sent to both designers for creation of like merchandise, and the company’s factories for creating more. The company has even added new shipping routes to ensure that managers get their merchandise quickly. Store mangers use handheld computers to monitored current and order new merchandise. While previously ordering new merchandise took around three hours, now it takes less then an hour. New fashions hit the stores much quicker then majority of the company’s competitors. With that said, the company is expanding rather quickly and majority of its expansion is outside of its native Spanish market. Expansion in Americas will likely put a strain on its distribution network as majority of its merchandise is produced in Europe. Asian production does account for approximately a...
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...primer paso para poder analizar la estrategia de Zara es comprender su misión, visión y valores. Dado que Zara es tan solo una parte del grupo Inditex, podemos referirnos a los valores del grupo para comprobar que se encuentran totalmente alineados. De hecho, al buscar la misión, visión de valores de Zara, la empresa nos redirige a la web del Grupo, no sin antes afirmar la siguiente frase: "El cliente es el centro de nuestro particular modelo de negocio, que integra diseño, fabricación, distribución y venta, a través de una amplia red de tiendas propia.” [1] De los valores del grupo inditex destacamos la primera frase: “El principal objetivo del Grupo es ofrecer productos de la máxima calidad a todos sus clientes garantizando la sostenibilidad de sus procesos a largo plazo.” [2] Como podemos observar tanto la versión Zara como la versión completa del Grupo indeitex mencionan un elemento clave para su actividad: el cliente. Podría decirse que uno de los principales objetivos de Zara es el de presentar una gama de productos de buena calidad y diseño a un precio razonable. Lograr este objetivo tan amplio no es sencillo, por este motivo, Zara decide segmentar el mercado posicionarse competitivamente enfocándose hacia un público joven, informal pero exigente y con gusto para la ropa de diseño. Una de las decisiones principales de alto nivel tomadas por Zara es el situarse en un gran numero de mercados internacionales. Actualmente Zara tiene abiertas más de 2000 tiendas en 87 países [8]...
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