Zara’s international outlook image and profile and the

product selection

Zara is a Spain-originated multinational retain clothing chain founded in 1975 at

Amancio Ortega. Zara is known for its fast-fashion clothing products. The company also

sells beauty products, shoes, perfumes, and other accessories. Each year, the

company is seen to launch more than 20 new products in different countries. These new

product lines enable the company to gain a competitive edge while making an attractive

brand image. In 2014, the company introduced RFID in its stores which provides

security to the products. By 2015, the brand was ranked 30 on Interbrand’s list of best

global brands. In 2019, the global fashion business Journal MDS illustrated that Zara

had a growth rate of 2.17% (Lopez and Fan, 2019). This giant retail chain is currently

operating in more than 96 countries with more than 3000 stores worldwide. The

company is waiting for more acceptable global rents which are essential for the

company to continue its expansion in new territories. Zara stores usually provide

products for all ages of people, for example, adult men and women, and kids. The

consumers of Zara are typically aged between 18 to 35. To serve these giant

demographics, the company produces more than 450 million products each year

(Tokatli, 2018). H&M, Gucci, Adidas, Sephora, Fashion Nova, and Uniqlo are some of

the major competitors of Zara. Zara got its competitive edge by raising awareness for

using non-toxic clothing through its detox campaign. The company also gains a

competitive edge by designing and storing a product in only 1 week compared to 6

monthly industry average. Its competitive strategy is to open new stores rather than
invest in advertisements. The company believes that new stores would give positive

publicity which will be more beneficial than advertising. Another competitive strategy is

to shorten the product life cycle and through its shorter product life cycle, it introduces or

alters the existing products in new times which helps in gaining a competitive edge

(Gheorghe and Matefi, 2021).