Fashion

      The Inditex's group net profit in 2012 rose to Euros 628 million, a 41 percent increase compared to 2011 with an annual return of 11 percent. The group expanded its shops sales resulting in 95 percent increase in sales being made outside the home market. The total number of shops for the Inditex's eight fashion distribution chains now stands at 5,255 in Europe, America, the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and North Africa. Overall, 966new stores were launched in 2012 with 50 new Zara stores.

Zara designs majority of it cloth in Spain (about 95 percent). It focuses on shorter response time enabling it to meet the constantly shifting fashion trends. However such moves do not take months, but this process is    complete within in 30 days; during which Zara identifies the latest trends, design it clothes and supply material to its stores. Such strategy means catching up a trend when it is in vogue in the fashion circles. On the contrary, even the smallest retailers take three to four months; while bigger retailers can take up to nine months to produce any item. It is this difference which makes Zara unique from others.

In the manufacturing environment, Zara's product development teams watch fashion shows and catwalks and translate the ideas into latest fashionable products. Zara has teams in the international arena; who observe the latest fashion trends and report leads to head office; which are later on converted into products. The mangers are also involved in tracking customer demands through sales analysis; this process enables Zara to meet customer's needs and be ahead of its rivals. Its research style is not traditional, but it includes consistent emails and phone calls from various stores to head office and responding to it instantly.