Comments on: Expecting Zarafication?

By: Devangshu Dutta

Devangshu Dutta — Mon, 21 May 2012 04:46:10 +0000

In reply to Runa. You're welcome, Runa. :-)

By: Runa

Runa — Fri, 18 May 2012 17:34:18 +0000

I loved the article on Zara, exactly what i was looking for…it kind of relates to the business startegy I was having in mind. Thank you for the deep analysis done. Helps entrepreneurs like us

By: Ankur T

Ankur T — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 06:45:31 +0000

Well..It goes like this. India doesn’t/Indians don’t wear according to the season which most of the countries in the world do. If we see Zara as a “Fashion Brand” or “Sought after brand”, it may be the hype that works for the time being. People do tend to forget brands once they have a “Low price” & “Best-fit” option, even if it comes from a factory in Bellary or Bhiwandi or any C-class town. But that doesn’t mean Zara lacks all the expertise. The above can only be few of the factors influencing Zara’s presence or growth. Other major concern (still not so public) are the export surplus stores which are rapidly coming up in every city. You will find the Brand you name at a 50% cheaper price. If you get your brand at this price, who cares whether it is from the EBO or some surplus store. If you have it flaunt it! is the gesture.
But it would be interesting to see how Zara fares in India. We see M & S is opening around 12 more stores in India but how profitable they are in comparison with an MBO?
Let’s wait to see how India really responds to Zara.

By: Sanjeev Mohanty

Sanjeev Mohanty — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 08:17:26 +0000

A very good start indeed. Even though numerous international brands have seen good starts during their launch. The first 100 crores at retail and the first 10 stores don’t tell the entire story. The second store in Promenade has been a damp squib. Even if you sell a mediocre brand in Select Citiwalk it delivers record numbers, there is no doubt. One of the top brands globally in the best mall in the country with the most affluent concentration of consumers, that’s a potent mix. In India, numbers start talking after 250 Million $ retail value. Very few brands like Benetton and Reebok have made that league or are close to it.The initial numbers sound outstanidng but the real test will be after the first 6 months of operations. The same hysteria has not been created by any other brand for sure. Also, watch out for people complaining about quality, customer service etc. We are closer to the US market than the European market in terms of consumer behaviour.Also a lot has been written about Zara which any 10 year old can write. Consumers want great merchandise with great brand appeal at a good value at a place which is easily accessible to them. That’s the game but the execution is far more complicated and understanding regional preferences of consumers is even more complex. Also, these brands have a larger womenswear play which is still a developing market and drops sharply outside the top 12 cities. Menswear will determine the success of any international brand in India. For this one has to localise slightly to cater to a wider audience. Even though big box retailers may not need to do anything to tinker with the merchandise range. Lastly, last speed varies in different markets, in India like you have to be careful while driving and cannot go beyond a certain speed even if you have a 350 horsepower V8 turbo charged engine. The same principle applies to Fast fashion, the fundamental core of this nmodel where majority (90%+)of the consumers may not want to update their wardrobe every 30 days, let alone every week like some of the European core consumers. Even though it is inevitable that every successful global brand will finally find ways and means to find their date with destiny to succeed in the Indian market. There is no choice. Winning the world cup may not be enough to lift the Spanish economy out of the gloom.

By: Amit

Amit — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 14:46:02 +0000

The baby Zara’s pretty much resonate the same wait & watch tactic that we Indians follow – I dont know why, but a result of that is why we are not where we should have been by now!
The parallels drawn to Sarojini, “damp squib” & “capabilities hibernated” resound that already inferred above – a reverse of that is what I would like to see & soon!!!!

By: Luxafarian fashion

Luxafarian fashion — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 16:51:53 +0000

Zara’s target is not the whole India. If it was, it they wouldn’t have opened it in only one mall. Zara has a focussed buyers who will run after Fashion and Trend, no matter what.

Zarafication!?! I’d be waiting for that… We Indians keep our capabilities hibernated until they see an international brand doing something in India… Read, something big.

Name it… movies, resto chain, hotels, fashion etc.

Thanks.

By: Pooja Nanda

Pooja Nanda — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 20:17:41 +0000

First 2 days at zara Delhi launch were mind boggling because of the sale @ launch. Found that the store had done somewhere around INR 2 crore business. But what after that? The collection went bust after the initial week and come the 3rd week, that too on a weekend, people are just there to observe the collection, try it out n then leave the product. Also, the store has in part sales.
I believe in targeting the premium to luxury segments, most of the product line cannot be what could be available at Sarojini Nagar, for no value in comparison. I am sorry for having put such a comment, but having spoken to a few shoppers, especially the cotton dresses, remind them of Sarojini.
For Zara to be a success in India one thing is for sure, not only they will have to look at the fashionability, it will also have to be quality such that the whole package is Value for Money.

By: Ken Watson

Ken Watson — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:10:24 +0000

I was taken by the comment recently at Prime Source 2010 in Hong Kong that the definition of a business idea by a label is the death of the trend. So is this case for Fast Fashion? Possibly. Clearly there is much confusion as to what it is. How fast is fast? Is it just many more phases or is it just fast enough to move with the fashion trend (provided the fashion is right)? Fashion is defined by being on trend, but who decides the trend? Hollywood or Bollywood, Hello or Grazia, or the fashion press? If we define the trend through effective guerrilla marketing, PR or Advertising to arrive at the time we deliver, are we fast or just clever in manipulating the trend to be recognisable when we deliver? Fast Fashion is normally at a lower perceived price. But is it cheap or just cheaper than the reference point?
If you take the definition as: “The delivery of fashion which is perceived to be up to date/on trend on a regular basis ….and lower in price than traditional fashion”, does the Zara model in India meet the ‘definition’? Probably not. It is not perceived to be low price (except in reference to high cost fashion brands). It is not at a price point which makes it widely accessible which you could say of the Zara price point in Europe. Is it on trend in an Indian sense? If India is slower to adopt fashion trends is Zara moving faster than the market?
As others have commented Zara will have a longer term strategy – it will be interesting to see whether it limits itself to servicing a more ‘premium’ end of the market or whether it will over time adjust its prices (with local sourcing) to reach a wider market. It appears to have adopted both strategies to date in overseas markets.
In the debate about the detail we may be missing the plot. Which is that fast fashion is a brilliant example of the application of lean thinking and from it we can learn a lot. We have found worldwide interest in the model because it a profitable business model and one that intrinsically has great consumer appeal.

By: Derek Dickins

Derek Dickins — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:45:39 +0000

What was significant here in Greece was that when Zara first came to Athens we thought it would fail as the Athenian lady tends to be rather picky when it comes to buying Fashion. How wrong we all were – Zara, followed by Massimo Dutti and more recently Uterque would seem to big successes whereas sadly several small boutique stores have closed , victims of the economic situation.

By: Ekta Pachnanda

Ekta Pachnanda — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 07:31:22 +0000

This was a very interesting read! Just a couple of thoughts which came to my mind: Do you see ZARA making a presence in B-Tier cities, if yes, do think the product line is well suited for the Indian consumer? Is ZARA setting up a(has already set up) a product development team in India to work alongside the European PD Team?