Zara

Vice Chairman Inditex resigns

The vice chairman of Spanish retailer Inditex, Jose Maria Castellano, has resigned his post.

In a statement made on Friday, Inditex thanked him for his "brilliant contribution" and long service. The company said Castellano left for "personal reasons". Castellano is credited with the success of Zara, a daughter-company of Inditex.

In February, Castellano was named vice chairman, having been CEO until that point. In June, Pablo Isla was named CEO of Inditex. The management reshuffle was said to have been in "preparation for expansion plans" as Inditex looked to double its size over the next five years.

Last week Inditex reported a 40 percent rise in second-quarter profits. Net income for the quarter climbed to Ђ121 million (Ј82.2 million), while sales rose 21 percent to Ђ1.41 billion. Zara represented 66 percent of the group's sales in the first six months of the year. Sales at the chain increased by 15 percent in the first half to Ђ1.85 billion. As of 31 July there were 762 Zara stores, up from 653 last year. Inditex said that it was on track to open 125 to 135 Zara stores by the end of the year.

www.inditex.com

26 September 2005

Inditex performance steady

Spanish retail chain operator Inditex has said that same-store sales for the second quarter ending 31 July are "going well", according to AFX News.

The company, which owns brands including Zara, Pull & Bear, Berschka and Massimo Dutti, said during a presentation that it expects between 335 and 395 new stores to open this year, compared to earlier estimates of between 300 and 350.

www.inditex.com

19 July 2005

Zara Home opens in Milan

The Inditex- owned Zara Home has opened a store in Milan. The new store is situated at the Assago shopping centre, where a number of the Group's other concepts are also housed. Zara Home is the fifth concept to have been introduced to Italy by the Inditex Group. It was preceded by Zara, Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Oysho. The Group operates over 40 shops in Italy.

Zara Home expects to open further stores in Italy this year. It has also opened its first store in Cyprus this year and is now present in eight international markets. Zara Home has over 75 stores and has already opened 13 new stores since the beginning of this year.

Zara has built up a presence in 55 countries, with a network of 757 stores in prominent locations in major cities. Inditex is a major fashion manufacturer and distributor, with eight sales concepts - Zara, Pull and Bear, Massimo Dutti, Berschka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home y Kiddy's Class. The Group operates 2.381 stores in 57 countries.

www.inditex.com

20 June

Zara And Inditex Post Profits

Spanish clothing group Inditex, operator of chains including Zara, has shown that its fast fashion approach can weather the current downturn in clothing sales across much of Europe. The retailer has reported a 21 per cent increase in first quarter net profit to Ђ124.8m in the three months to April 30.

Total sales rose 19 per cent to Ђ1.41bn, with profits coming in ahead of market forecasts thanks to improved margins. Gross margin increased by 23 per cent to 55.7 per cent. Inditex, which operates more than 2,300 stores in over 50 countries, opened 90 new stores across the quarter. The group will invest up to Ђ800m in further expansion this year, planning to open up to 395 new stores worldwide.

The quarter saw the announcement of the first Inditex stores in Indonesia, as well as a deal to acquire a majority stake in the Zara franchisee in Poland, described as market with "significant growth potential for Zara".

The Inditex board has approved the appointment of Pablo Isla as the company's new chief executive. Isla was previously co-chairman of tobacco group Altadis. Inditex said it is revamping its management

structure "to strengthen and adjust the management structure of the group with a new generation of managers which will face up to the future growth plans".

www.inditex.com

14 June 2005

Zara Plans For Expansion

Spanish fashion group Inditex has announced plans for an expansion drive that will see it grow to 4,000 stores worldwide by the end of 2009. Inditex will continue to roll out its flagship brand Zara, but also has high hopes for its other chains. Teenage brand Bershka, which opened its first UK store at the Metro Centre, Newcastle, last year, will throw down the gauntlet to Top Shop with a flagship store on Oxford Street and further London stores this year.

Overall, Inditex plans to grow from its current total of around 2,250 stores to more than 4,000 stores by the end of 2009. That would increase its estate by 75 per cent and would see it overtake US fashion giant Gap, which is taking a more cautious approach to expansion in the face of flagging international sales.

Contracts have been signed for two-thirds of the 360 new stores it hopes to open this year. A major new Zara store has just opened at Lakeside, Essex. Inditex plans more than 100 new Zara stores in Europe, focusing on France, Italy, Germany and the UK.

Inditex chains Massimo Dutti, which sells officewear, and Pull and Bear, which sells basic lines, are earmarked for wider expansion across Europe alongside Zara and Bershka. Others, including lingerie chain Oysho, childrenswear brand Kiddy's Class, girlswear chain Stradivarius, and Zara Home, will restrict expansion closer to home in Spain and Portugal for the time being.

Confirmation of the expansion plans came as Inditex reported a 41 per cent increase in profit to Ђ628m during 2004. Net sales were up 23 per cent to Ђ5,670m with like-for-like sales growth of 9 per cent. Across the year, sales in younger brands grew slightly as a proportion of total sales, up to 32.6 per cent