The ZARA Zeitgeist

Above:  ZARA is now in 78 countries with another 80 new stores planned to open in China this year
Source: Marketing Magazine, August 2011

Above: One of ZARA's girls: Lara Stone models one of the Spanish retailing giant's summer collections

The Spanish are coming! Or should I say they are already here and with the number of dark blue shopping bags sighted on the streets recently, are already firmly entrenched in the minds and wallets of Australian women. Interestingly the fashion retailing giant that is ZARA defies all standard retailing marketing practices. They do not advertise but choose to invest in prime retailing real estate such as Bourke Street Mall in Melbourne and Pitt Street in Sydney. They let their windows and their clothes do the talking and let their customers be their brand ambassadors. ZARA also supply their customers with a regular fashion fix of new stock delivered to their stores every 2 weeks. You can read more about the ZARA brand and their strategy in a fascinating article by Marketing Magazine in their August issue (hard copy).