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Company Overview
Inditex Group, headquartered in Al Coruna, Spain, is one of the world’s largest fashion retail companies. Amancio Ortega Gaona found Inditex in 1963. The group is made up of over 100 companies operating in textile design, manufacturing and distribution. It owns eight retail fashion stores including Zara, Zara Homes, Pull & Bear, Msssimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho and Uterque. According to its website the company attributes its success to a “unique business model based on innovation and flexibility” and an approach to fashion that embraces “creativity, quality design and rapid turnaround to adjust to changing market demands.” This business strategy has lead to the international success of its flagship store, Zara, which is its most profitable retail store, accounting for over 60% of Inditex’s sales. Inditex also uses a cross border strategy of acquisitions and joint venture for international expansion. The company’s website states that for the 2010 fiscal year, Inditex has seen an increase of 437 stores, expansion into 3 additional countries (Bulgaria, India, Kazakhstan) and an increase in employees from 92,301 for fiscal year 2009 to 100,138 employees for the 2010 fiscal year. Even in the current world economic downturn, for the 2010 fiscal year Inditex has seen a 13% increase in net sales and 32% increase in net profits over its 2009 fiscal year. Furthermore, there net sales increased 12% to 6,209 million Euros in the first half of 2011, according to the website.
Vision & Strategy
Inditex’s vision is creativity and quality design in fashion at reasonable prices with a rapid response to market demands, resulting in fast international expansion and an excellent performance of its commercial formats. “Agility and speed-to-market are vital elements of the Inditex vision of the fashion business,” points out General Manager,
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