Inditex to launch Zara's second-hand platform in Spain in 2023

In November 2022, the Inditex group launched Zara Pre-Owned, a second-hand platform, in the United Kingdom, offering customers the opportunity to give new life to their garments through repair, donation, or peer-to-peer sales. The company is now focused on expanding the platform to new markets in 2023, starting with France and Germany, and later in Spain.

In an exclusive interview with the economic newspaper Expansión, Óscar García Maceiras, CEO of the Galician textile group, revealed that the company is making every effort to bring Zara Pre-Owned to Spain before the end of the year.

This peer-to-peer fashion resale platform focuses exclusively on items from the Zara brand, enabling direct connections between consumers. Earlier this year, it was reported that Inditex was looking for partners in the Spanish market to bring Zara Pre-Owned to the country, tapping into the growing trend of second-hand consumption. According to a study from June 2022, 43% of Spaniards consider second-hand options in their purchasing decisions.

In recent years and months, many other textile companies have made their own foray into the second-hand fashion market with their unique propositions. Kiabi and Carrefour have dedicated corners in some of their stores for second-hand items, while Veepee also launched a program in Spain for the collection and resale of articles, just to name a few.

In the aforementioned interview with Expansión, García Maceiras discussed present and future challenges and analysed some of the company's initiatives and lines of action. The executive highlighted the importance of the integrated model of physical stores and online sales for the group. The physical store "serves as an essential operational support for our online operations," he asserted.

In 2022, the conglomerate's digital sales grew by 4%, while physical store sales increased by 23%. With a profitability per square meter that was 16% higher in 2022 compared to 2019, the executive indicated that the average size of the group's upcoming store openings will be between 2,500 and 3,000 square meters, although some flagship locations, such as the store in Plaza España in Madrid, reach 7,000 square meters.

From a strategic standpoint, García Maceiras ruled out creating new chains to accommodate the new business lines that the group has embraced in recent years, particularly through Zara. While the brand has created specific corners in its stores for its latest lines, such as Zara Beauty, there are no plans to establish independent stores for these subdivisions in its roadmap.

In any case, Inditex, which does not identify as a "fast fashion" group, will continue to prioritise diversification as a growth lever across all its brands, not just Zara.

Regarding 2023, the executive mentioned in the interview that the fiscal year has begun on a positive note. The company is performing well, and all markets are operating adequately, giving rise to optimism about the course of the year. In the beginning of the year, the group experienced a 13.5% increase in sales at constant exchange rates, and this figure rises to 17.5% when excluding the impact of the Russian and Ukrainian markets.

Despite its already substantial size, the company believes it has significant growth potential both domestically and internationally. In Spain, Inditex accounted for 15.4% of the total revenue in 2022, but the company has several projects in the pipeline that will enable them to strengthen their position in various cities, according to the CEO's analysis.

Beyond the Spanish market, the company has its sights set on countries like the United States, which, according to García Maceiras, currently accounts for only 0.5 out of every 100 dollars in fashion sales, presenting opportunities for growth. Inditex has around thirty new projects planned for the United States over the next three years and is also considering launching new chains, such as Massimo Dutti or Zara Home, in the market where they currently only have Zara stores.

Inditex to launch Zara's second-hand platform in Spain in 2023

See also