INTRODUCTION
Zara, one of the most, if not the most, important organization in Spain has surprised analysts and academics due to its quick positioning in the international market. Currently, Zara has decided to undertake the US market, even though the Spanish Giant has already conquered it. Being at the forefront of Inditex’s group, Zara has become a point of reference for American customers in the fashion World, as well as a marketing model for publicity experts. Even though it just counts 24 shops in US, considering that more than 700 of them are all over Europe, “Advertising Age”, the American publicity magazine has ranked Zara as one of the 50 firms with the best 2006 marketing strategies.
Zara’s success relies on very basic features such as: a good and centralized distribution chain, the use of no publicity, and the fact that they do not only sell their products, in this case clothes and accessories, but they also provide for the design and manufacture themselves.
ZARA ORIGINS
From the middle of the 20th century, 1963 till 1974 the chairman and founder of Inditex, Amancio Ortega Gaona, began his career in the textile-manufacturing sector. His business started to grow progressively throughout the decade and intended to include a number of manufacturing centres distributing products to various European countries.
In 1975, the first Zara store was opened and it was located in a central street of A Coruña (Spain). Over the 70’s and 80’s Zara started to have a positive impact on the public and, as a result of this, its network of stores began to appear in the major Spanish cities. In 1985 Inditex was positioned as the head of the corporate group. In December 1988, Zara went a step further and opened the first Zara store outside Spain, in Oport ...