tk*zara

T.K.Maxx and Zara are very different retailers in the fashion industry. Whilst one offers low cost designer labels the other retails quality own-brand labelled clothes at a reasonable price. Zara sets itself apart from the giant market place by celebrating its motive to offer exactly what the customer wants, going to detective levels to make sure they understand their audience’s wishes. T.K.Maxx on the other-hand distinguishes itself by reducing prices of designer labels by up to 60%, and these are neither seconds nor fakes. Both retailers face problems brought on by such motives. Whilst Zara struggles to standout from other competitors with similar aims, T.K.Maxx finds it hard to keep the shop floor clear and tidy- leaving some customers wondering if they are in a jumble sale. Through examining these retailers we will endeavor to find out if the strategy and operations they have implemented work.
To begin reviewing both Zara and T.K.Maxx, we must first look at UK fashion retail industry as a whole. It is important that we understand the industry so that we can deduce how successful the two companies are in relation to it. This can be done by critically analyzing both the PEST factors (Figure 1:0), and what Michael Porter has named the Five Forces.
The PEST factors are the external forces acting on a customer which the company cannot control. For example, political concerns surrounding exploitation of cheap labour. This has become an increasing problem due to mass globalization in recent years, leading to vast price competition between retailers. As a result, several restrictions and legislations have been implemented from trade unions and the European Union. However, this legislation has been broken several times in the past years such as the Arcadia Group scandal (Hickman 2010).
This legislation has also impacted economically, as with retailers having to pay their international laborers more, the prices of clothing has increased. This has added to the