Spain’s Inditex is planning to bring Bershka, which is targeted at 20-somethings, after the spectacular success of its flagship Zara in the country.
New Delhi: Youth fashion brand Bershka is making its debut in India in November, the third label from Spain’s Inditex to launch in the country after the runaway success of Zara followed by that of Massimo Dutti.
“Bershka is opening its first India store on November 1,” a person familiar with the development said. The inaugural store is currently under fit-outs at the Phoenix Palladium mall in Mumbai, the person added.
An Inditex India spokesperson did not respond to IndiaRetailing’s emailed request for comment.
IndiaRetailing had reported in December 2022 that Inditex is planning to bring Bershka, that is targeted at 20-somethings, after the stupendous success of its flagship Zara in the country. With about 50% of India’s population below the age of 25, India is increasingly becoming a magnet for global fashion brands to tap the burgeoning market as growth is tapering off in their home as well as markets.
About a dozen marquee global fashion and lifestyle brands including Galeries Lafayette, Asos, Shien, Old Navy, and Foot Locker among a dozen other brands are expected to enter India with their brick-and-mortar stores in the next two to three years. Inditex is also mulling to introduce Pull&Bear brand in India, most probably in 2025.
Inditex has already announced in its latest annual report that it plans to introduce Bershka and Zara Home in India this year. The upcoming Bershka store in Mumbai’s Phoenix Palladium mall is located right next to the yet-to-open outlet by Japan’s Uniqlo.
Zara entered India in 2010 and the Spanish brand stunned India’s fashion industry by turning profitable the very next year in 2011, after being merely a year in operation. Zara’s home run in India continued for more than a decade. However, the world’s largest fashion brand experienced a bit of a slowdown in business in the latest fiscal year 2024 when sales increased by 8%, a far cry from Zara’s growth over previous years.
Bershka is expected to face competition from existing brands including H&M, Forever 21, and Uniqlo among other global labels and Indian youth-oriented upstarts including Reliance Retail’s Yousta and Tata Group’s successful Zudio chain.
