Showing posts with label Europe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Europe. Show all posts
5 October 2012
Zara
Zara is a Spanish clothing and accessories retailer based in Arteixo, Galicia, and founded in 1975 by Amancio Ortega and Rosalía Mera. It is the flagship chain store of the Inditex group; the fashion group also owns brands such as Massimo Dutti, Pull and Bear, Uterqüe, Stradivarius and Bershka.
It is claimed that Zara needs just two weeks[1] to develop a new product and get it to stores, compared to the six-month industry average, and launches around 10,000 new designs each year. Zara has resisted the industry-wide trend towards transferring fast fashion production to low-cost countries. Perhaps its most unusual strategy was its policy of zero advertising; the company preferred to invest a percentage of revenues in opening new stores instead. This has increased the idea of Zara as a "fashion imitator" company and low cost products. Lack of advertisement is also in contrast to direct competitors such as Uniqlo and United Colors of Benetton.
Zara was described by Louis Vuitton Fashion Director Daniel Piette as "possibly the most innovative and devastating retailer in the world." Zara has also been described as a "Spanish success story" by CNN.[2]
Contents
1 Origins and history
2 Products
3 Manufacturing and distribution
3.1 Human rights concerns
3.1.1 Sweatshops
3.1.2 Shop Staff Abuse
4 Stores
5 Gallery
6 References
7 External links
Origins and history
The founder of Zara, Amancio Ortega, opened the first Zara store in 1975 in a central street in downtown A Coruña, Galicia, Spain.[3] Ortega named his store Zorba after watching the classic film Zorba the Greek, but apparently there was a bar that was called the same, Zorba, two blocks away, and the owner of the bar came and said, "this is going to confuse things to have two Zorbas." They had already made the molds for the letters in the sign, so they just rearranged them to see what they could find, and they found Zara.[4] The first store featured low-priced lookalike products of popular, higher-end clothing fashions. The store proved to be a success, and Ortega began opening more Zara stores throughout Spain. During the 1980s, Ortega started changing the design, manufacturing, and distribution process to reduce lead times and react to new trends in a quicker way, in what he called "instant fashions". The company based its improvements in the use of information technologies and using groups of designers instead of individuals.[5]
In 1980, the company started its international expansion through Porto, Portugal. In 1989 it entered the United States and in 1990 France.
This international expansion was increased in the 1990s, with Mexico (1992), Greece (1994), Belgium and Sweden (1994), etc. until reaching its current presence in over 73 countries.
Zara stores are company-owned, except where local legislation forbids foreigner-owned businesses; In those cases, Zara franchises the stores.
Zara in Dundee, UK
Zara's previous logo
Products
As of 2007, Zara stores have men's clothing and women's clothing, each of these subdivided in Lower Garment, Upper Garment, Shoes, Cosmetics and Complements, as well as children's clothing (Zara Kids). Currently their sizing on women's clothing goes to a US size 12 or a UK size 14 .[6]
Manufacturing and distribution
The men's department of a typical Zara store. Almere, The Netherlands
Zara clothing made in Portugal
Zara is a vertically integrated retailer. Unlike similar apparel retailers, Zara controls most of the steps on the supply-chain, designing, manufacturing, and distributing its products.[7] Zara set up its own factory in La Coruña (a city known for its textile industry) in 1980, and upgraded to reverse milk-run-type production and distribution facilities in 1990. This approach, designed by Toyota Motor Corp., was called the just-in-time (JIT) system. It enabled the company to establish a business model that allows self-containment throughout the stages of materials, manufacture, product completion and distribution to stores worldwide within just a few days.[8]
Regarding the design strategy, an article in Businessworld magazine[9] describes it as follows: "Zara was a fashion imitator. It focused its attention on understanding the fashion items that its customers wanted and then delivering them, rather than on promoting predicted season's trends via fashion shows and similar channels of influence, which the fashion industry traditionally used.
Zara on Briggate, Leeds after refurbishment. It now includes the new logo and store layout
Only the 5% of the products Zara sells are manufactured in Spain, 15% in the rest of Europe, and 80% in Asian and African countries and the rest of the world.[10] So while some competitors outsource all production to Asia, Zara makes its most fashionable items—half of all its merchandise—at a dozen company-owned factories in Spain and Portugal, particularly in Galicia and northern Portugal where labour is somewhat cheaper than in most of Western Europe. Clothes with a longer shelf life, such as basic T-shirts, are outsourced to low-cost suppliers, mainly in Asia and Turkey.[11]
Zara can offer considerably more products than similar companies. It produces about 11,000 distinct items annually compared with 2,000 to 4,000 items for its key competitors. The company can design a new product and have finished goods in its stores in four to five weeks; it can modify existing items in as little as two weeks. Shortening the product life cycle means greater success in meeting consumer preferences.[12] If a design doesn't sell well within a week, it is withdrawn from shops, further orders are canceled and a new design is pursued. Zara relies on sophisticated information technology, such as PDAs with wireless transmission capabilities, in the hands of store managers, to monitor customers' fickle fashion changes.[13] Zara has a range of basic designs that are carried over from year to year, but some fashion forward designs can stay on the shelves less than four weeks, which encourages Zara fans to make repeat visits. An average high-street store in Spain expects customers to visit three times a year. That goes up to 17 times for Zara.[14]
On September 6, 2010, Financial Times reported that Inditex launched the first online boutique for its best-selling brand Zara. The website will begin in Spain, the UK, Portugal, Italy, Germany and France – six countries that are among the most important of the company's 76 markets. When asked about the company's late arrival to internet retailing, Pablo Isla, chief executive, said they have been waiting for online demand to build before launching into cyberspace. All items on sale at its Zara outlets would be available online and at the same prices. Customers can choose from the usual range of paying methods and opt either for a free store pick-up or paid-for postal delivery. The online return and exchange policy is identical to the store system, with shoppers given 30 days to change their minds. Queries will be handled by customer service operators or via e-mail or chat messaging. Inditex said that iPhone and iPad applications that allowed purchasing would soon be available.[15]
On November 4, 2010, Zara Online extended the service to five more countries: Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.[16] Online stores will begin operating in the United States and South Korea in 2011.[17] The simple website allows shoppers to filter a search for garments by; type of garment, colours, sizes, prices, reference number, etc. Customers can view products in precise detail from different angles and use a SuperZoom feature to get an exceptional close-up look at the details of each item.[16]
In 2011, Zara entered the Australian market with a three story, 1400sqm store in the Westfield Sydney complex opened on April 21, 2011 and a second three story 1800sqm store at Bourke Street Mall Melbourne which opened on 15 June 2011.[18][19][20] Zara will open its third Australian store in November 2011 at Burnside Village Shopping Centre in Adelaide, South Australia. It will be Australia's largest at 2,300sqm, and modelled on the design of their Fifth Avenue, New York store.[21]
In November 2011, Zara entered the South African market with a flagship store in the upmarket suburb of Sandton, in Sandton City Shopping Complex, Johannesburg. In March 2012, Zara opened their second store in South Africa, at Gateway Theatre of Shopping in Durban. Later in 2012, a third store was opened in Cape Town at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront mall.
Human rights concerns
Sweatshops
On August 16, 2011, a Brazil television show called A Liga (of the Bandeirantes TV network) accused the company of using suppliers who were running sweatshops for their outsourced production.[22] On August 17, 2011, the Regional Superintendency of Labour and Employment of São Paulo, Brazil, closed a factory that produced Zara's clothing for its poor labour conditions. Bolivians were brought illegally to Brazil, locked in small apartments and sewed clothes for 12–14 hours a day. They could not leave the apartment without the consent of the supervisor and didn't have hot water for taking showers or food for lunch. The Bolivians earned about 1 USD for each dress they sewed, although the retail price in Brazilian stores was about 70 USD for the same dress. Many of the workers were forced into paying their wages to human traffickers who had smuggled them into the country.[23][24]
In a statement, Zara’s representatives said that the accusations of slave labour made against the retailer represent a “serious breach in accordance with the Code of Conduct for External Manufacturers and Workshops of Inditex.” They also countered that all factories responsible for unauthorized outsourcing have been asked to regularize immediately the situation of the workers involved. “The Inditex group, along with Brazil’s Ministry of Work, will strengthen the supervision of the production system of all its suppliers in the country to ensure that such cases do not occur again.”[25]
Shop Staff Abuse
On March 21, 2012, the investigative journalism television program Uppdrag Granskning (from Sveriges Television) reported stories of twenty-five Zara employees, both shop-managers and shop staff, that testified about severe abuse and terror against their employees in Sweden and Europe. Zara's representative did respond that they will investigate and solve these problems in the organisation. The union of shop workers, Handels, did respond that Zara had promised improvement and was breaking their legal agreements and Unionen, organising white-collar worker such as shop-manager, called Zara's company management as "Management by fear".
Stores
There are a total of 1721 Zara stores and 187 Kiddy's Class stores. Some Zara stores operate as Lefties stores instead of Zara, a brand for low-cost fashion.
The number of Zara stores in each country (by October 31st, 2012):[26]
Africa
Morocco: 4
Egypt: 4
South Africa: 3
Tunisia: 2
Asia
China: 127
Japan: 82
South Korea: 39
Saudi Arabia: 26
Israel: 20
Indonesia: 11
Hong Kong: 10
India: 9
Malaysia: 9
United Arab Emirates: 9
Singapore: 7
Thailand: 7
Lebanon: 6
Philippines: 6
Kuwait: 5
Taiwan: 5
Kazakhstan: 3
Bahrain: 2
Jordan: 2
Qatar: 2
Syria: 2
Oman: 1
Nepal: 1
Europe
Spain: 335 y 145 Kiddy's Class
France: 119 y 4 Kiddy's Class
Italy: 88 y 12 Kiddy's Class
Germany: 69
United Kingdom: 64
Portugal: 61 y 19 Kiddy's Class
Russia: 61
Greece: 41 y 6 Kiddy's Class
Poland: 41
Turkey: 32
Belgium: 27
Netherlands: 21
Romania: 19
Austria: 12
Switzerland: 10
Croatia: 9
Ireland: 9
Sweden: 9
Ukraine: 9
Hungary: 7
Bulgaria: 6
Czech Republic: 6
Cyprus: 5
Slovenia: 5
Finland: 4
Latvia: 4
Lithuania: 4
Serbia: 4
Norway: 3
Slovakia: 3
Azerbaijan: 2
Denmark: 2
Estonia: 2
Iceland: 2
Luxembourg: 2
Andorra: 1
Armenia: 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina: 1
Georgia: 1
Macedonia: 1
Malta: 1
Monaco: 1
Montenegro: 1
North America
Mexico: 56
United States: 45
Canada: 22
South America
Brazil: 38
Colombia: 11
Argentina: 10
Venezuela: 9
Chile: 8
Uruguay: 2
Ecuador: 1
Peru: 1
Central America
Costa Rica: 2
El Salvador: 2
Guatemala: 2
Honduras: 2
Panama: 2
Caribbean
Dominican Republic: 3
Puerto Rico: 1
Oceania
Australia: 6
It is claimed that Zara needs just two weeks[1] to develop a new product and get it to stores, compared to the six-month industry average, and launches around 10,000 new designs each year. Zara has resisted the industry-wide trend towards transferring fast fashion production to low-cost countries. Perhaps its most unusual strategy was its policy of zero advertising; the company preferred to invest a percentage of revenues in opening new stores instead. This has increased the idea of Zara as a "fashion imitator" company and low cost products. Lack of advertisement is also in contrast to direct competitors such as Uniqlo and United Colors of Benetton.
Zara was described by Louis Vuitton Fashion Director Daniel Piette as "possibly the most innovative and devastating retailer in the world." Zara has also been described as a "Spanish success story" by CNN.[2]
Contents
1 Origins and history
2 Products
3 Manufacturing and distribution
3.1 Human rights concerns
3.1.1 Sweatshops
3.1.2 Shop Staff Abuse
4 Stores
5 Gallery
6 References
7 External links
Origins and history
The founder of Zara, Amancio Ortega, opened the first Zara store in 1975 in a central street in downtown A Coruña, Galicia, Spain.[3] Ortega named his store Zorba after watching the classic film Zorba the Greek, but apparently there was a bar that was called the same, Zorba, two blocks away, and the owner of the bar came and said, "this is going to confuse things to have two Zorbas." They had already made the molds for the letters in the sign, so they just rearranged them to see what they could find, and they found Zara.[4] The first store featured low-priced lookalike products of popular, higher-end clothing fashions. The store proved to be a success, and Ortega began opening more Zara stores throughout Spain. During the 1980s, Ortega started changing the design, manufacturing, and distribution process to reduce lead times and react to new trends in a quicker way, in what he called "instant fashions". The company based its improvements in the use of information technologies and using groups of designers instead of individuals.[5]
In 1980, the company started its international expansion through Porto, Portugal. In 1989 it entered the United States and in 1990 France.
This international expansion was increased in the 1990s, with Mexico (1992), Greece (1994), Belgium and Sweden (1994), etc. until reaching its current presence in over 73 countries.
Zara stores are company-owned, except where local legislation forbids foreigner-owned businesses; In those cases, Zara franchises the stores.
Zara in Dundee, UK
Zara's previous logo
Products
As of 2007, Zara stores have men's clothing and women's clothing, each of these subdivided in Lower Garment, Upper Garment, Shoes, Cosmetics and Complements, as well as children's clothing (Zara Kids). Currently their sizing on women's clothing goes to a US size 12 or a UK size 14 .[6]
Manufacturing and distribution
The men's department of a typical Zara store. Almere, The Netherlands
Zara clothing made in Portugal
Zara is a vertically integrated retailer. Unlike similar apparel retailers, Zara controls most of the steps on the supply-chain, designing, manufacturing, and distributing its products.[7] Zara set up its own factory in La Coruña (a city known for its textile industry) in 1980, and upgraded to reverse milk-run-type production and distribution facilities in 1990. This approach, designed by Toyota Motor Corp., was called the just-in-time (JIT) system. It enabled the company to establish a business model that allows self-containment throughout the stages of materials, manufacture, product completion and distribution to stores worldwide within just a few days.[8]
Regarding the design strategy, an article in Businessworld magazine[9] describes it as follows: "Zara was a fashion imitator. It focused its attention on understanding the fashion items that its customers wanted and then delivering them, rather than on promoting predicted season's trends via fashion shows and similar channels of influence, which the fashion industry traditionally used.
Zara on Briggate, Leeds after refurbishment. It now includes the new logo and store layout
Only the 5% of the products Zara sells are manufactured in Spain, 15% in the rest of Europe, and 80% in Asian and African countries and the rest of the world.[10] So while some competitors outsource all production to Asia, Zara makes its most fashionable items—half of all its merchandise—at a dozen company-owned factories in Spain and Portugal, particularly in Galicia and northern Portugal where labour is somewhat cheaper than in most of Western Europe. Clothes with a longer shelf life, such as basic T-shirts, are outsourced to low-cost suppliers, mainly in Asia and Turkey.[11]
Zara can offer considerably more products than similar companies. It produces about 11,000 distinct items annually compared with 2,000 to 4,000 items for its key competitors. The company can design a new product and have finished goods in its stores in four to five weeks; it can modify existing items in as little as two weeks. Shortening the product life cycle means greater success in meeting consumer preferences.[12] If a design doesn't sell well within a week, it is withdrawn from shops, further orders are canceled and a new design is pursued. Zara relies on sophisticated information technology, such as PDAs with wireless transmission capabilities, in the hands of store managers, to monitor customers' fickle fashion changes.[13] Zara has a range of basic designs that are carried over from year to year, but some fashion forward designs can stay on the shelves less than four weeks, which encourages Zara fans to make repeat visits. An average high-street store in Spain expects customers to visit three times a year. That goes up to 17 times for Zara.[14]
On September 6, 2010, Financial Times reported that Inditex launched the first online boutique for its best-selling brand Zara. The website will begin in Spain, the UK, Portugal, Italy, Germany and France – six countries that are among the most important of the company's 76 markets. When asked about the company's late arrival to internet retailing, Pablo Isla, chief executive, said they have been waiting for online demand to build before launching into cyberspace. All items on sale at its Zara outlets would be available online and at the same prices. Customers can choose from the usual range of paying methods and opt either for a free store pick-up or paid-for postal delivery. The online return and exchange policy is identical to the store system, with shoppers given 30 days to change their minds. Queries will be handled by customer service operators or via e-mail or chat messaging. Inditex said that iPhone and iPad applications that allowed purchasing would soon be available.[15]
On November 4, 2010, Zara Online extended the service to five more countries: Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.[16] Online stores will begin operating in the United States and South Korea in 2011.[17] The simple website allows shoppers to filter a search for garments by; type of garment, colours, sizes, prices, reference number, etc. Customers can view products in precise detail from different angles and use a SuperZoom feature to get an exceptional close-up look at the details of each item.[16]
In 2011, Zara entered the Australian market with a three story, 1400sqm store in the Westfield Sydney complex opened on April 21, 2011 and a second three story 1800sqm store at Bourke Street Mall Melbourne which opened on 15 June 2011.[18][19][20] Zara will open its third Australian store in November 2011 at Burnside Village Shopping Centre in Adelaide, South Australia. It will be Australia's largest at 2,300sqm, and modelled on the design of their Fifth Avenue, New York store.[21]
In November 2011, Zara entered the South African market with a flagship store in the upmarket suburb of Sandton, in Sandton City Shopping Complex, Johannesburg. In March 2012, Zara opened their second store in South Africa, at Gateway Theatre of Shopping in Durban. Later in 2012, a third store was opened in Cape Town at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront mall.
Human rights concerns
Sweatshops
On August 16, 2011, a Brazil television show called A Liga (of the Bandeirantes TV network) accused the company of using suppliers who were running sweatshops for their outsourced production.[22] On August 17, 2011, the Regional Superintendency of Labour and Employment of São Paulo, Brazil, closed a factory that produced Zara's clothing for its poor labour conditions. Bolivians were brought illegally to Brazil, locked in small apartments and sewed clothes for 12–14 hours a day. They could not leave the apartment without the consent of the supervisor and didn't have hot water for taking showers or food for lunch. The Bolivians earned about 1 USD for each dress they sewed, although the retail price in Brazilian stores was about 70 USD for the same dress. Many of the workers were forced into paying their wages to human traffickers who had smuggled them into the country.[23][24]
In a statement, Zara’s representatives said that the accusations of slave labour made against the retailer represent a “serious breach in accordance with the Code of Conduct for External Manufacturers and Workshops of Inditex.” They also countered that all factories responsible for unauthorized outsourcing have been asked to regularize immediately the situation of the workers involved. “The Inditex group, along with Brazil’s Ministry of Work, will strengthen the supervision of the production system of all its suppliers in the country to ensure that such cases do not occur again.”[25]
Shop Staff Abuse
On March 21, 2012, the investigative journalism television program Uppdrag Granskning (from Sveriges Television) reported stories of twenty-five Zara employees, both shop-managers and shop staff, that testified about severe abuse and terror against their employees in Sweden and Europe. Zara's representative did respond that they will investigate and solve these problems in the organisation. The union of shop workers, Handels, did respond that Zara had promised improvement and was breaking their legal agreements and Unionen, organising white-collar worker such as shop-manager, called Zara's company management as "Management by fear".
Stores
There are a total of 1721 Zara stores and 187 Kiddy's Class stores. Some Zara stores operate as Lefties stores instead of Zara, a brand for low-cost fashion.
The number of Zara stores in each country (by October 31st, 2012):[26]
Africa
Morocco: 4
Egypt: 4
South Africa: 3
Tunisia: 2
Asia
China: 127
Japan: 82
South Korea: 39
Saudi Arabia: 26
Israel: 20
Indonesia: 11
Hong Kong: 10
India: 9
Malaysia: 9
United Arab Emirates: 9
Singapore: 7
Thailand: 7
Lebanon: 6
Philippines: 6
Kuwait: 5
Taiwan: 5
Kazakhstan: 3
Bahrain: 2
Jordan: 2
Qatar: 2
Syria: 2
Oman: 1
Nepal: 1
Europe
Spain: 335 y 145 Kiddy's Class
France: 119 y 4 Kiddy's Class
Italy: 88 y 12 Kiddy's Class
Germany: 69
United Kingdom: 64
Portugal: 61 y 19 Kiddy's Class
Russia: 61
Greece: 41 y 6 Kiddy's Class
Poland: 41
Turkey: 32
Belgium: 27
Netherlands: 21
Romania: 19
Austria: 12
Switzerland: 10
Croatia: 9
Ireland: 9
Sweden: 9
Ukraine: 9
Hungary: 7
Bulgaria: 6
Czech Republic: 6
Cyprus: 5
Slovenia: 5
Finland: 4
Latvia: 4
Lithuania: 4
Serbia: 4
Norway: 3
Slovakia: 3
Azerbaijan: 2
Denmark: 2
Estonia: 2
Iceland: 2
Luxembourg: 2
Andorra: 1
Armenia: 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina: 1
Georgia: 1
Macedonia: 1
Malta: 1
Monaco: 1
Montenegro: 1
North America
Mexico: 56
United States: 45
Canada: 22
South America
Brazil: 38
Colombia: 11
Argentina: 10
Venezuela: 9
Chile: 8
Uruguay: 2
Ecuador: 1
Peru: 1
Central America
Costa Rica: 2
El Salvador: 2
Guatemala: 2
Honduras: 2
Panama: 2
Caribbean
Dominican Republic: 3
Puerto Rico: 1
Oceania
Australia: 6
3 October 2012
Hugo Boss
Hugo Boss AG is a German luxury fashion and style house based in Metzingen, Germany. It is named after its founder, Hugo Boss (1885–1948).
Contents
1 Today
2 History
3 Shift from Union Manufacturing
4 See also
5 References
6 External links
Today
Claus-Dietrich Lahrs, CEO of the Hugo Boss AG
Boss Bottled, a fragrance launched in 1998.[2]
Hugo Boss currently has at least 6,102 points of sale in 124 countries. Hugo Boss AG directly owns over 364 retail stores with over 1,000 stores and shops owned by franchisees.
Products are manufactured in a variety of locations, including the company's own production sites in Metzingen, Germany; Morrovalle, Italy; Radom, Poland; Izmir, Turkey; and Cleveland, United States.[3]
There are two core brands, BOSS and HUGO across the world they are known :
Boss Black. Menswear (1970), womenswear (2000). Modern classic clothing which is more widely distributed than other lines, and has the broadest product range.
Boss Orange. Menswear (1999), womenswear (2005). Originally quirky styling, with bohemian influences, this line was relaunched in 2010 as denim based casual wear.
Boss Selection. Menswear (2003). Higher priced clothing aimed at a more mature market, with emphasis on English tailoring styles.
Boss Green. Menswear (2003), womenswear (2010). Previously known as Boss Sport, was relaunched in 2003 as a golf-style active wear collection.
Hugo. Menswear (1993), womenswear (1998). Fashion forward styling, with a more European look, and sometimes androgynous models.
Hugo Boss has licensing agreements with various companies to produce Hugo Boss branded products. These include agreements with Samsung and HTC to produce cell phones; C.W.F. Children Worldwide Fashion SAS to produce children's clothing; Procter & Gamble Prestige to produce fragrances and skincare;[4] Movado to produce watches;[5] and Safilo to produce sunglasses and eyewear.[6]
In 1985 the company was floated on the stock exchange. In 1991, the Marzotto textile group acquired a 77.5% stake for $165 million.[7] Marzotto spun off its fashion brands into the newly created Valentino Fashion Group in 2005.
In 2009, BOSS Black was by far the largest segment, consisting 68% of all sales, with the remainder made up by BOSS Orange (17%), BOSS Selection (3%), BOSS Green (3%) and HUGO (9%). Sales taken in company owned stores were 19% of total sales worldwide.[8]
History
1933 Boss advertising for National Socialist uniforms
Hugo Boss started his clothing company in 1924 in Metzingen, a small town south of Stuttgart, where it is still based. However, due to the economic climate in Germany at the time, Boss was forced into bankruptcy. In 1931, he reached an agreement with his creditors, leaving him with six sewing machines to start again. The same year, he became a member of the National Socialist party and a sponsoring member ("Förderndes Mitglied") of the Schutzstaffel (SS) therefore was economically raised due to their help. [9] He later stated himself that he had joined the party because of their promise to end unemployment and because he felt "temporarily" withdrawn from the Lutheran church.[9] He joined the German Labour Front in 1936, the Reich Air Protection Association in 1939, and the National Socialist People's Welfare in 1941.[9] His sales increased from 38,260 RM in 1932 to over 3,300,000 RM in 1941, while his profits increased in the same period from 5,000 RM to 241,000 RM.[9] Though he claimed in a 1934/1935 advertising that he had been a "supplier for National Socialist uniforms since 1924", such supplies are probable since 1928/1929 and certain since 1934, when he became an Reichszeugmeisterei-licensed (official) supplier of uniforms to the Sturmabteilung, Schutzstaffel, Hitler Youth, National Socialist Motor Corps, and other party organizations.[9] To meet demand in later years of the war, Boss used about 30 to 40 prisoners of war and about 150 forced (i.e. slave) labourers, from the Baltic States, Belgium, France, Italy, Austria, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the Soviet Union.[9] According to German historian Henning Kober, the company managers were "avowed nazis", "the Boss were all great admirers of Adolf Hitler", and Hugo Boss had in 1945 in his apartment a photograph of himself with Hitler taken in the latter's Obersalzberg retreat.[10]
In a 1946 show trial judgement, based on his early party membership, his financial support of the SS and the uniforms delivered to the National Socialist party even before 1933, Boss was considered both an "activist" and a "supporter and beneficiary of National Socialism". He was stripped of his voting rights, his capacity to run a business and, fined "a very heavy penalty" of 100,000 marks.[9] He died in 1948 but his business survived.
Shift from Union Manufacturing
In March 2010, Hugo Boss was boycotted by actor Danny Glover for the company's plans to close an Ohio suit manufacturing plant after 375 employees of the Workers United Union reportedly rejected Hugo Boss proposal to cut the workers' hourly wage 36% from $13 an hour to $8.30.[11] After an initial statement by CFO Andreas Stockert that the company had a responsibility to shareholders and would move suit manufacturing from Ohio to other facilities in Turkey, Bulgaria, and Romania,[12] the company "succumbed" to the boycott and cancelled the project.[13]
Contents
1 Today
2 History
3 Shift from Union Manufacturing
4 See also
5 References
6 External links
Today
Claus-Dietrich Lahrs, CEO of the Hugo Boss AG
Boss Bottled, a fragrance launched in 1998.[2]
Hugo Boss currently has at least 6,102 points of sale in 124 countries. Hugo Boss AG directly owns over 364 retail stores with over 1,000 stores and shops owned by franchisees.
Products are manufactured in a variety of locations, including the company's own production sites in Metzingen, Germany; Morrovalle, Italy; Radom, Poland; Izmir, Turkey; and Cleveland, United States.[3]
There are two core brands, BOSS and HUGO across the world they are known :
Boss Black. Menswear (1970), womenswear (2000). Modern classic clothing which is more widely distributed than other lines, and has the broadest product range.
Boss Orange. Menswear (1999), womenswear (2005). Originally quirky styling, with bohemian influences, this line was relaunched in 2010 as denim based casual wear.
Boss Selection. Menswear (2003). Higher priced clothing aimed at a more mature market, with emphasis on English tailoring styles.
Boss Green. Menswear (2003), womenswear (2010). Previously known as Boss Sport, was relaunched in 2003 as a golf-style active wear collection.
Hugo. Menswear (1993), womenswear (1998). Fashion forward styling, with a more European look, and sometimes androgynous models.
Hugo Boss has licensing agreements with various companies to produce Hugo Boss branded products. These include agreements with Samsung and HTC to produce cell phones; C.W.F. Children Worldwide Fashion SAS to produce children's clothing; Procter & Gamble Prestige to produce fragrances and skincare;[4] Movado to produce watches;[5] and Safilo to produce sunglasses and eyewear.[6]
In 1985 the company was floated on the stock exchange. In 1991, the Marzotto textile group acquired a 77.5% stake for $165 million.[7] Marzotto spun off its fashion brands into the newly created Valentino Fashion Group in 2005.
In 2009, BOSS Black was by far the largest segment, consisting 68% of all sales, with the remainder made up by BOSS Orange (17%), BOSS Selection (3%), BOSS Green (3%) and HUGO (9%). Sales taken in company owned stores were 19% of total sales worldwide.[8]
History
1933 Boss advertising for National Socialist uniforms
Hugo Boss started his clothing company in 1924 in Metzingen, a small town south of Stuttgart, where it is still based. However, due to the economic climate in Germany at the time, Boss was forced into bankruptcy. In 1931, he reached an agreement with his creditors, leaving him with six sewing machines to start again. The same year, he became a member of the National Socialist party and a sponsoring member ("Förderndes Mitglied") of the Schutzstaffel (SS) therefore was economically raised due to their help. [9] He later stated himself that he had joined the party because of their promise to end unemployment and because he felt "temporarily" withdrawn from the Lutheran church.[9] He joined the German Labour Front in 1936, the Reich Air Protection Association in 1939, and the National Socialist People's Welfare in 1941.[9] His sales increased from 38,260 RM in 1932 to over 3,300,000 RM in 1941, while his profits increased in the same period from 5,000 RM to 241,000 RM.[9] Though he claimed in a 1934/1935 advertising that he had been a "supplier for National Socialist uniforms since 1924", such supplies are probable since 1928/1929 and certain since 1934, when he became an Reichszeugmeisterei-licensed (official) supplier of uniforms to the Sturmabteilung, Schutzstaffel, Hitler Youth, National Socialist Motor Corps, and other party organizations.[9] To meet demand in later years of the war, Boss used about 30 to 40 prisoners of war and about 150 forced (i.e. slave) labourers, from the Baltic States, Belgium, France, Italy, Austria, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the Soviet Union.[9] According to German historian Henning Kober, the company managers were "avowed nazis", "the Boss were all great admirers of Adolf Hitler", and Hugo Boss had in 1945 in his apartment a photograph of himself with Hitler taken in the latter's Obersalzberg retreat.[10]
In a 1946 show trial judgement, based on his early party membership, his financial support of the SS and the uniforms delivered to the National Socialist party even before 1933, Boss was considered both an "activist" and a "supporter and beneficiary of National Socialism". He was stripped of his voting rights, his capacity to run a business and, fined "a very heavy penalty" of 100,000 marks.[9] He died in 1948 but his business survived.
Shift from Union Manufacturing
In March 2010, Hugo Boss was boycotted by actor Danny Glover for the company's plans to close an Ohio suit manufacturing plant after 375 employees of the Workers United Union reportedly rejected Hugo Boss proposal to cut the workers' hourly wage 36% from $13 an hour to $8.30.[11] After an initial statement by CFO Andreas Stockert that the company had a responsibility to shareholders and would move suit manufacturing from Ohio to other facilities in Turkey, Bulgaria, and Romania,[12] the company "succumbed" to the boycott and cancelled the project.[13]
5 September 2012
Mango
Mango, stylized MANGO, is a clothing design and manufacturing company, founded in Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain) by brothers Isak Andic and Nahman Andic.[1]
Contents
1 History
2 Lawsuits
3 References
4 External links
History
Its first website was created in 1995 and, five years later, in the year 2000, it opened its first online store. H. E. by Mango is a men's line created in 2008.[2]
Mango has over 8,600 employees, 1,850 of whom work at the Hangar Design Centre and at its Headquarters in Palau Solità i Plegamans (Barcelona). Despite being a Spanish clothing company, and having the most stores in Spain, with a large proportion in Madrid, the city of Istanbul, Turkey, is the one with the largest amount of Mango stores.[3]
Since fall 2011, Kate Moss is Mango's muse. She first appeared in a video featuring Terry Richardson who shot the whole campaign and directed the commercial.[4]
In April 2011, Letizia, Princess of Asturias visited the company headquarters wearing a Mango outfit.[5]
Lawsuits
In 2010, the French division got sued by Anne-Cécile Couétil, creator of the brand Velvetine. She argued that Mango plagiarized two models of her handbags. Despite an attempt of protection via the INPI and similarities between her products and the ones of Mango, the creator lost the lawsuit. She was sentenced to pay 6,000 euros[6] to Mango over excessive procedure.[7][8][9][10] On her weblog, the creator claims she wants to lodge an appeal.[11] Several bloggers were surprised by the judicial decision saying it's unfair.[12][13][14][15][16][17] The brand Mango reacted on Facebook via its official fanpage and answered also on the creator's blog.[11]
Contents
1 History
2 Lawsuits
3 References
4 External links
History
Its first website was created in 1995 and, five years later, in the year 2000, it opened its first online store. H. E. by Mango is a men's line created in 2008.[2]
Mango has over 8,600 employees, 1,850 of whom work at the Hangar Design Centre and at its Headquarters in Palau Solità i Plegamans (Barcelona). Despite being a Spanish clothing company, and having the most stores in Spain, with a large proportion in Madrid, the city of Istanbul, Turkey, is the one with the largest amount of Mango stores.[3]
Since fall 2011, Kate Moss is Mango's muse. She first appeared in a video featuring Terry Richardson who shot the whole campaign and directed the commercial.[4]
In April 2011, Letizia, Princess of Asturias visited the company headquarters wearing a Mango outfit.[5]
Lawsuits
In 2010, the French division got sued by Anne-Cécile Couétil, creator of the brand Velvetine. She argued that Mango plagiarized two models of her handbags. Despite an attempt of protection via the INPI and similarities between her products and the ones of Mango, the creator lost the lawsuit. She was sentenced to pay 6,000 euros[6] to Mango over excessive procedure.[7][8][9][10] On her weblog, the creator claims she wants to lodge an appeal.[11] Several bloggers were surprised by the judicial decision saying it's unfair.[12][13][14][15][16][17] The brand Mango reacted on Facebook via its official fanpage and answered also on the creator's blog.[11]
19 August 2012
H&M
H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB (operating as H&M) is a Swedish multinational retail-clothing company, known for its fast-fashion clothing for men, women, teenagers and children.
H&M exists in 43 countries and as of 2011 employed around 94,000 people.[2] It had 2,325 stores at end of 2011 and 2,629 stores at end of August 2012.[3] It is ranked the second largest global clothing retailer, just behind Spain-based Inditex (parent company of ZARA), and leads over third largest global clothing retailer, United States based GAP Inc.
The design team in the company’s Sweden office controls the steps of production, from merchandise planning to establishing specifications, and production is outsourced to approximately 800 factories in Europe and Asia. These facilities are used for horizontal division of labor, rather than being integrated.[4]
Contents
1 Locations
1.1 Asia
1.2 Europe
1.2.1 Croatia
1.2.2 Russia
1.3 North America
1.3.1 Canada
1.3.2 United States
1.4 Oceania
1.4.1 Australia
2 Marketing
3 Guest-designer collaborations
4 Brand
5 Home furnishing
6 Controversies
7 Philanthropy
8 The company worldwide
9 See also
10 References
11 External links
Locations
Asia
H&M store in the Ginza district in Tokyo, Japan
The company opened its first Asian store (also the company's first franchise) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in 2006. It followed with a store in the Salmiya district of Kuwait City, Kuwait.
It expanded into East Asia in March 2007, with its first store opening in Central Hong Kong on 10 March 2007. Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue opened that store where she also exclusively launched her range of swimwear, "H&M loves Kylie".
The first location in Shanghai, China, was opened in 2007.[citation needed]
The first Japanese store was opened in Ginza on 13 September 2008, while a second store was opened in Harajuku in November 2008. Another store was opened in the Shibuya shopping district on 19 September 2009.[5]
On 25 February 2009, the company announced that it had signed an agreement to open its first store in South Korea, located in the Myeongdong district of Seoul, and that it was scheduled to open during Spring 2010.[6]
The first Israeli store opened in Tel Aviv in 2010, followed by five more stores across the country,[7] including a branch at the Malha Mall in Jerusalem.[8]
The company opened its first store in Singapore on 3 September 2011. The store, located on Orchard Road, is 2,800 square meters and spans three levels.[9] A second store, with 20,000 square feet and spanning two levels, was opened at ION Orchard on 28 November 2012.[10]
The first store in Thailand, a duplex flagship store with an area of 3,300 sqm, was opened on 29 September 2012. It is located in Siam Paragon in Bangkok. Another store, located at The Mall Bangkapi also in Bangkok, will be open in 10 October 2012.[11]
The first store in Malaysia opened on 22 September 2012, and is located at Lot 10, Kuala Lumpur [12] The second store at Setia City Mall in Shah Alam, has been opened since 4 October 2012. Another store is located at Paradigm Mall in Petaling Jaya.
Europe
H&M store at the Pavilions Shopping Centre, Birmingham, UK.
H&M store in Angers, France (May 2010).
H&M store on Briggate in Leeds, England (May 2010).
H&M store in Sheffield City centre
Map of H&M stores in the U.K. and Ireland, as of August 2011.
Its first non-Swedish store was opened in Norway in 1964,[13] and from then onwards, the company embarked upon a major expansion program opening many further stores in Europe, including Denmark, Germany, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The first H&M store to open outside of Scandinavia was in the United Kingdom, in 1976.[14] And this year H&M is planning to go back north - the opening of two new stores in Riga is announced.[15]
In the 1990s, its first stores opened in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, the Netherlands and Spain. In Portugal the first store opened in 2003, in Chiado, Lisboa. The company has continued to expand its business and the company has an extensive network throughout much of Europe. Germany is the company's largest market (with 377 stores as of 2011), followed by the United Kingdom (with 192 stores as of 2011) and then Sweden (with 168 stores as of 2011).
In 2004, H&M opened its first store in the Republic of Ireland.[16] As of 2013 there a 12 individual H&M stores in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
In 2013 H&M will open several stores in Lithuania.[17] It is planned that the first two stores will be opened in Lithuanian capital Vilnius. The largest store will be opened in the biggest shopping mall "Akropolis" and will be the size of 3.000 square meters. According to H&M, this store will be the largest in the Baltic states.[18] It was publicly declared that later that year openings in Kaunas and Klaipeda - second and third Lithuanian cities - will follow up.
Croatia
Croatia is the second European country that isn't in The European Union where H&M opened their store. On 7 and 14 April 2011, first two stores were opened in Croatia in the exclusive Cvjetni shopping center in Zagreb and in the Arena Centar, near the Zagreb Arena. On 25 August 2011 store was opened in City Center One, Split, on 8 September 2011 store was opened in Zadar and on 15 September 2011 store was opened in City Center One, Zagreb. On 20 October 2011 store was opened in Westgate Shopping City.
Russia
On 13 March 2009, the company opened its first location in Russia, in the Metropolis mall in Moscow, near the Moscow Metro Voykovskaya station. On 20 March 2009, it opened a second Russian location in the MEGA Family Shopping Centre in Khimki. On 22 October 2009, a third location opened in the MEGA Family Shopping Centre in Belaya Dacha. On 18 October 2009, a store was opened in Rostokino at the Golden Babylon shopping centre, Europe's largest[citation needed] shopping centre.
North America
Canada
The company opened its first Canadian store in March 2004. There are currently[when?] fifty-six stores in Canada, including Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec.
United States
H&M store on 125th Street in New York City, United States (unknown date; pre April 2006).
Map of H&M stores in the U.S. and southern Canada, as of August 2011.
As of August 2010, the company had nearly two hundred individual stores in the United States.[citation needed]
It had opened its first U.S. store in New York City, on Fifth Avenue (at 51st Street) in March 2000; as of January 2011, nine additional stores in city's Manhattan borough alone.[citation needed]
On 18 March 2010, the company opened its first store in North Carolina at the Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh.[citation needed]
In October 2010, plans were announced for it to open its first Texas location in Dallas.[19] The Dallas store opened 19 August 2011 at the North Park Mall off of 75 in North Dallas.[20]
The company opened in The Gardens Mall in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on 5 November 2010.[citation needed]
On 11 November 2010, it opened its first Oregon location at the Pioneer Place in Portland.[citation needed]
In December 2010, H&M opened its largest store in the world at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The store contains three floors, three checkout stations, an elevator, and a cut-open facade.
In 2011, H&M opened a flagship store in Denver, Colorado and also announced that it would open other locations in the Carolinas in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.[21] In January 2013, it was announced a new store would be opened in Louisville, Kentucky in the Fall of the year along with a brand-new flagship store in Nashville, Tennessee.
Online Shopping
H&M announced through its official Twitter account that there will be online shopping available to USA customers Summer of 2013.[citation needed]
Oceania
Australia
Although the company as of December 2012 had no stores in Australia, in April 2007, Kylie Minogue teamed up with the company to introduce a swimwear line called, "H&M loves Kylie", featuring a theme of Australia. "When we think of Australia and glamour, we think Kylie, who is such a stylish person," the company's design head Margareta van den Bosch said in a statement.[22]
Marketing
In 2008, the company used the song "Hang On" by British singer-songwriter Lettie as background music to its UK website. Their fashions have been featured in an interactive fashion art film by Imagine Fashion called Decadent Control. It premiered in March 2011 and stars Roberto Cavalli, Kirsty Hume, Eva Herzigová and Brad Kroenig.
Guest-designer collaborations
In November 2004, selected company stores offered an exclusive collection by fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld. The press reported large crowds and that the initial inventories in the larger cities were sold out within an hour,[23] although the clothes were still available in less-fashion-sensitive areas until the company redistributed them to meet with demand.[24]
In November 2005, the company launched a collection by Stella McCartney and, in November 2006, by avant-garde Dutch designers Viktor & Rolf.
In March 2007, it launched another collaboration designed by the pop star Madonna.[25] In June 2007 the company worked with game developers Maxis to create a stuff pack for the latter's The Sims 2 computer game, H&M Fashion Stuff.[26]
In November 2007, the company launched a collection by Italian designer Roberto Cavalli. It was reported that the clothing sold out very quickly. Also in 2007, another design with Kylie Minogue was launched in Shanghai, China.[22] In the spring of 2008 the Finnish company Marimekko was selected as guest designer and was followed by Japanese Comme des Garçons in the fall.
For spring and summer 2009, the British designer Matthew Williamson created two exclusive ranges for the company – the first being a collection of women's clothes released in selected stores. The second collection saw Williamson branch into menswear for the first time, only in selected stores. The second collection also featured swimwear for men and women and was available in every company store worldwide.[27]
On 14 November 2009, the company released a limited-edition diffusion collection by Jimmy Choo featuring shoes and handbags, ranging from £30 to £170 including a range of men's shoes. The collection also included clothing designed by Choo for the first time, many garments made from suede and leather, and was available in 200 stores worldwide, including London's Oxford Circus store.[28] Sonia Rykiel also collaborated with the company, by designing a ladies knitwear and lingerie range that was released in selected company stores on 5 December 2009.
For Fall 2010, the company collaborated with French fashion house Lanvin[29] for its 2010 guest designer.
For Spring/Summer 2011, the company collaborated with fashion blogger Elin Kling, which was available at selected stores only.
In June 2011, H&M announced a collaboration plan with Versace, that was released on November 19. Versace is also planning a Spring collaboration with H&M that will only be available in countries with online sales.[30]
In November 2011, H&M announced a collaboration plan with Marni, to be launched in March 2012. The campaign will be directed by award-winning director Sofia Coppola.[31]
On 4 October 2012, Japanese Vogue editor Anna Dello Russo will launch an accessories collection at H&M as Paris Fashion Week draws to an end. The collection will be stocked in 140 H&M stores worldwide and also be sold through the H&M website[32]
On June 12, 2012 H&M confirmed that it will launch a collaboration with avant-garde label Maison Martin Margiela for a fall rollout. The Maison Martin Margiela collection for H&M will hit stores on November 15, 2012.
Brand
The branding consultancy Interbrand ranked the company as the twenty-first most-valuable global brand in 2009 and 2010,[33] making it the highest-ranked retailer in the survey. Its worth is estimated at $12–16 billion.[34][35]
The full company name Hennes & Mauritz was rebranded to H&M to simplify worldwide perception of the brand.[when?]
The company owns the two-letter domain hm.com. The domain was registered in the early 1990s, but data on the first registration is lost. In 1998 Hennes & Mauritz was able to buy the domain hm.com from a company called A1 in a non-published domain transaction.
Home furnishing
In a press release, the company announced that it would begin selling home furnishings.[36] As of 2009, it was distributed exclusively by the company's internet catalog, so it is only available in countries where H&M is sold online, such as Denmark, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK.
Controversies
On 6 January 2010, it was reported that unsold clothing and other items in one New York City store are cut up before being discarded, presumably to prevent resale or use.[37]
In August 2011, nearly 300 workers passed out in one week at a Cambodian factory supplying H&M. Fumes from chemicals, poor ventilation, malnutrition and even "mass hysteria" have all been blamed for making workers ill. The minimum wage in Cambodia is the equivalent of just $66 (£42) a month, a level that human rights groups say is not even half that required to meet basic needs.[38]
On 24 January 2012, H&M was reported to have stolen an artist's work, using it on multiple items without compensating the artist.[39]
Philanthropy
As of 2012, H&M has raised over $4.5 million USD, through a 5 year partner program with UN charity organization UNICEF.[40]
Starting in February 2013, H&M will offer patrons a voucher in exchange for used garments. Donated garments will be processed by I:CO, a retailer that repurposes and recycles used clothing with the goal of creating a zero-waste economy. The initiative is similar to a clothes-collection voucher program launched in April 2012 by Marks & Spencer in partnership with Oxfam.[41][42][43]
The company worldwide
H&M worldwide.
300+ stores
200+ stores
100+ stores
50+ stores
20+ stores
10+ stores
1+ stores
Upcoming stores
Number of stores as of 2012[44]
Africa:[45]
Egypt 4
Morocco 4
Asia:[45][46]
China 101
Saudi Arabia 19
Japan 15
United Arab Emirates 12
Hong Kong 13
Israel 9
Lebanon 6
South Korea 6
Kuwait 4
Bahrain 3
Qatar 2
Malaysia 3 - 2012
Thailand 2 - 2012
Jordan 1
Oman 1
Singapore 2
Europe:[47]
Germany 394
United Kingdom 213
Sweden 173
France 168
Spain 132
Netherlands 119
Norway 104
Poland 100
Denmark 90
Italy 87
Switzerland 80
Austria 66
Belgium 66
Finland 47
Russia 41
Czech Republic 24
Portugal 23
Greece 22
Hungary 20
Ireland 15
Slovakia 13
Slovenia 12
Croatia 11
Romania 19
Turkey 11
Luxembourg 10
Bulgaria 5
Latvia 2
Estonia 3 - 2013
Lithuania 4 - Fall 2013[48]
Serbia 2 -Fall 2013
North America:[49]
United States 233
Canada 58
Mexico 1
South America:[50]
H&M exists in 43 countries and as of 2011 employed around 94,000 people.[2] It had 2,325 stores at end of 2011 and 2,629 stores at end of August 2012.[3] It is ranked the second largest global clothing retailer, just behind Spain-based Inditex (parent company of ZARA), and leads over third largest global clothing retailer, United States based GAP Inc.
The design team in the company’s Sweden office controls the steps of production, from merchandise planning to establishing specifications, and production is outsourced to approximately 800 factories in Europe and Asia. These facilities are used for horizontal division of labor, rather than being integrated.[4]
Contents
1 Locations
1.1 Asia
1.2 Europe
1.2.1 Croatia
1.2.2 Russia
1.3 North America
1.3.1 Canada
1.3.2 United States
1.4 Oceania
1.4.1 Australia
2 Marketing
3 Guest-designer collaborations
4 Brand
5 Home furnishing
6 Controversies
7 Philanthropy
8 The company worldwide
9 See also
10 References
11 External links
Locations
Asia
H&M store in the Ginza district in Tokyo, Japan
The company opened its first Asian store (also the company's first franchise) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in 2006. It followed with a store in the Salmiya district of Kuwait City, Kuwait.
It expanded into East Asia in March 2007, with its first store opening in Central Hong Kong on 10 March 2007. Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue opened that store where she also exclusively launched her range of swimwear, "H&M loves Kylie".
The first location in Shanghai, China, was opened in 2007.[citation needed]
The first Japanese store was opened in Ginza on 13 September 2008, while a second store was opened in Harajuku in November 2008. Another store was opened in the Shibuya shopping district on 19 September 2009.[5]
On 25 February 2009, the company announced that it had signed an agreement to open its first store in South Korea, located in the Myeongdong district of Seoul, and that it was scheduled to open during Spring 2010.[6]
The first Israeli store opened in Tel Aviv in 2010, followed by five more stores across the country,[7] including a branch at the Malha Mall in Jerusalem.[8]
The company opened its first store in Singapore on 3 September 2011. The store, located on Orchard Road, is 2,800 square meters and spans three levels.[9] A second store, with 20,000 square feet and spanning two levels, was opened at ION Orchard on 28 November 2012.[10]
The first store in Thailand, a duplex flagship store with an area of 3,300 sqm, was opened on 29 September 2012. It is located in Siam Paragon in Bangkok. Another store, located at The Mall Bangkapi also in Bangkok, will be open in 10 October 2012.[11]
The first store in Malaysia opened on 22 September 2012, and is located at Lot 10, Kuala Lumpur [12] The second store at Setia City Mall in Shah Alam, has been opened since 4 October 2012. Another store is located at Paradigm Mall in Petaling Jaya.
Europe
H&M store at the Pavilions Shopping Centre, Birmingham, UK.
H&M store in Angers, France (May 2010).
H&M store on Briggate in Leeds, England (May 2010).
H&M store in Sheffield City centre
Map of H&M stores in the U.K. and Ireland, as of August 2011.
Its first non-Swedish store was opened in Norway in 1964,[13] and from then onwards, the company embarked upon a major expansion program opening many further stores in Europe, including Denmark, Germany, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The first H&M store to open outside of Scandinavia was in the United Kingdom, in 1976.[14] And this year H&M is planning to go back north - the opening of two new stores in Riga is announced.[15]
In the 1990s, its first stores opened in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, the Netherlands and Spain. In Portugal the first store opened in 2003, in Chiado, Lisboa. The company has continued to expand its business and the company has an extensive network throughout much of Europe. Germany is the company's largest market (with 377 stores as of 2011), followed by the United Kingdom (with 192 stores as of 2011) and then Sweden (with 168 stores as of 2011).
In 2004, H&M opened its first store in the Republic of Ireland.[16] As of 2013 there a 12 individual H&M stores in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
In 2013 H&M will open several stores in Lithuania.[17] It is planned that the first two stores will be opened in Lithuanian capital Vilnius. The largest store will be opened in the biggest shopping mall "Akropolis" and will be the size of 3.000 square meters. According to H&M, this store will be the largest in the Baltic states.[18] It was publicly declared that later that year openings in Kaunas and Klaipeda - second and third Lithuanian cities - will follow up.
Croatia
Croatia is the second European country that isn't in The European Union where H&M opened their store. On 7 and 14 April 2011, first two stores were opened in Croatia in the exclusive Cvjetni shopping center in Zagreb and in the Arena Centar, near the Zagreb Arena. On 25 August 2011 store was opened in City Center One, Split, on 8 September 2011 store was opened in Zadar and on 15 September 2011 store was opened in City Center One, Zagreb. On 20 October 2011 store was opened in Westgate Shopping City.
Russia
On 13 March 2009, the company opened its first location in Russia, in the Metropolis mall in Moscow, near the Moscow Metro Voykovskaya station. On 20 March 2009, it opened a second Russian location in the MEGA Family Shopping Centre in Khimki. On 22 October 2009, a third location opened in the MEGA Family Shopping Centre in Belaya Dacha. On 18 October 2009, a store was opened in Rostokino at the Golden Babylon shopping centre, Europe's largest[citation needed] shopping centre.
North America
Canada
The company opened its first Canadian store in March 2004. There are currently[when?] fifty-six stores in Canada, including Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec.
United States
H&M store on 125th Street in New York City, United States (unknown date; pre April 2006).
Map of H&M stores in the U.S. and southern Canada, as of August 2011.
As of August 2010, the company had nearly two hundred individual stores in the United States.[citation needed]
It had opened its first U.S. store in New York City, on Fifth Avenue (at 51st Street) in March 2000; as of January 2011, nine additional stores in city's Manhattan borough alone.[citation needed]
On 18 March 2010, the company opened its first store in North Carolina at the Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh.[citation needed]
In October 2010, plans were announced for it to open its first Texas location in Dallas.[19] The Dallas store opened 19 August 2011 at the North Park Mall off of 75 in North Dallas.[20]
The company opened in The Gardens Mall in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on 5 November 2010.[citation needed]
On 11 November 2010, it opened its first Oregon location at the Pioneer Place in Portland.[citation needed]
In December 2010, H&M opened its largest store in the world at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The store contains three floors, three checkout stations, an elevator, and a cut-open facade.
In 2011, H&M opened a flagship store in Denver, Colorado and also announced that it would open other locations in the Carolinas in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.[21] In January 2013, it was announced a new store would be opened in Louisville, Kentucky in the Fall of the year along with a brand-new flagship store in Nashville, Tennessee.
Online Shopping
H&M announced through its official Twitter account that there will be online shopping available to USA customers Summer of 2013.[citation needed]
Oceania
Australia
Although the company as of December 2012 had no stores in Australia, in April 2007, Kylie Minogue teamed up with the company to introduce a swimwear line called, "H&M loves Kylie", featuring a theme of Australia. "When we think of Australia and glamour, we think Kylie, who is such a stylish person," the company's design head Margareta van den Bosch said in a statement.[22]
Marketing
In 2008, the company used the song "Hang On" by British singer-songwriter Lettie as background music to its UK website. Their fashions have been featured in an interactive fashion art film by Imagine Fashion called Decadent Control. It premiered in March 2011 and stars Roberto Cavalli, Kirsty Hume, Eva Herzigová and Brad Kroenig.
Guest-designer collaborations
In November 2004, selected company stores offered an exclusive collection by fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld. The press reported large crowds and that the initial inventories in the larger cities were sold out within an hour,[23] although the clothes were still available in less-fashion-sensitive areas until the company redistributed them to meet with demand.[24]
In November 2005, the company launched a collection by Stella McCartney and, in November 2006, by avant-garde Dutch designers Viktor & Rolf.
In March 2007, it launched another collaboration designed by the pop star Madonna.[25] In June 2007 the company worked with game developers Maxis to create a stuff pack for the latter's The Sims 2 computer game, H&M Fashion Stuff.[26]
In November 2007, the company launched a collection by Italian designer Roberto Cavalli. It was reported that the clothing sold out very quickly. Also in 2007, another design with Kylie Minogue was launched in Shanghai, China.[22] In the spring of 2008 the Finnish company Marimekko was selected as guest designer and was followed by Japanese Comme des Garçons in the fall.
For spring and summer 2009, the British designer Matthew Williamson created two exclusive ranges for the company – the first being a collection of women's clothes released in selected stores. The second collection saw Williamson branch into menswear for the first time, only in selected stores. The second collection also featured swimwear for men and women and was available in every company store worldwide.[27]
On 14 November 2009, the company released a limited-edition diffusion collection by Jimmy Choo featuring shoes and handbags, ranging from £30 to £170 including a range of men's shoes. The collection also included clothing designed by Choo for the first time, many garments made from suede and leather, and was available in 200 stores worldwide, including London's Oxford Circus store.[28] Sonia Rykiel also collaborated with the company, by designing a ladies knitwear and lingerie range that was released in selected company stores on 5 December 2009.
For Fall 2010, the company collaborated with French fashion house Lanvin[29] for its 2010 guest designer.
For Spring/Summer 2011, the company collaborated with fashion blogger Elin Kling, which was available at selected stores only.
In June 2011, H&M announced a collaboration plan with Versace, that was released on November 19. Versace is also planning a Spring collaboration with H&M that will only be available in countries with online sales.[30]
In November 2011, H&M announced a collaboration plan with Marni, to be launched in March 2012. The campaign will be directed by award-winning director Sofia Coppola.[31]
On 4 October 2012, Japanese Vogue editor Anna Dello Russo will launch an accessories collection at H&M as Paris Fashion Week draws to an end. The collection will be stocked in 140 H&M stores worldwide and also be sold through the H&M website[32]
On June 12, 2012 H&M confirmed that it will launch a collaboration with avant-garde label Maison Martin Margiela for a fall rollout. The Maison Martin Margiela collection for H&M will hit stores on November 15, 2012.
Brand
The branding consultancy Interbrand ranked the company as the twenty-first most-valuable global brand in 2009 and 2010,[33] making it the highest-ranked retailer in the survey. Its worth is estimated at $12–16 billion.[34][35]
The full company name Hennes & Mauritz was rebranded to H&M to simplify worldwide perception of the brand.[when?]
The company owns the two-letter domain hm.com. The domain was registered in the early 1990s, but data on the first registration is lost. In 1998 Hennes & Mauritz was able to buy the domain hm.com from a company called A1 in a non-published domain transaction.
Home furnishing
In a press release, the company announced that it would begin selling home furnishings.[36] As of 2009, it was distributed exclusively by the company's internet catalog, so it is only available in countries where H&M is sold online, such as Denmark, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK.
Controversies
On 6 January 2010, it was reported that unsold clothing and other items in one New York City store are cut up before being discarded, presumably to prevent resale or use.[37]
In August 2011, nearly 300 workers passed out in one week at a Cambodian factory supplying H&M. Fumes from chemicals, poor ventilation, malnutrition and even "mass hysteria" have all been blamed for making workers ill. The minimum wage in Cambodia is the equivalent of just $66 (£42) a month, a level that human rights groups say is not even half that required to meet basic needs.[38]
On 24 January 2012, H&M was reported to have stolen an artist's work, using it on multiple items without compensating the artist.[39]
Philanthropy
As of 2012, H&M has raised over $4.5 million USD, through a 5 year partner program with UN charity organization UNICEF.[40]
Starting in February 2013, H&M will offer patrons a voucher in exchange for used garments. Donated garments will be processed by I:CO, a retailer that repurposes and recycles used clothing with the goal of creating a zero-waste economy. The initiative is similar to a clothes-collection voucher program launched in April 2012 by Marks & Spencer in partnership with Oxfam.[41][42][43]
The company worldwide
H&M worldwide.
300+ stores
200+ stores
100+ stores
50+ stores
20+ stores
10+ stores
1+ stores
Upcoming stores
Number of stores as of 2012[44]
Africa:[45]
Egypt 4
Morocco 4
Asia:[45][46]
China 101
Saudi Arabia 19
Japan 15
United Arab Emirates 12
Hong Kong 13
Israel 9
Lebanon 6
South Korea 6
Kuwait 4
Bahrain 3
Qatar 2
Malaysia 3 - 2012
Thailand 2 - 2012
Jordan 1
Oman 1
Singapore 2
Europe:[47]
Germany 394
United Kingdom 213
Sweden 173
France 168
Spain 132
Netherlands 119
Norway 104
Poland 100
Denmark 90
Italy 87
Switzerland 80
Austria 66
Belgium 66
Finland 47
Russia 41
Czech Republic 24
Portugal 23
Greece 22
Hungary 20
Ireland 15
Slovakia 13
Slovenia 12
Croatia 11
Romania 19
Turkey 11
Luxembourg 10
Bulgaria 5
Latvia 2
Estonia 3 - 2013
Lithuania 4 - Fall 2013[48]
Serbia 2 -Fall 2013
North America:[49]
United States 233
Canada 58
Mexico 1
South America:[50]
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