Spanish retail chain Zara looking for Dublin store

The Spanish fashion retail chain Zara is looking to move into the highly competitive Dublin market and is understood to be scouting for a large store in either Grafton Street or Henry Street.

It is discovering what many UK multiples have known for a long time - that shops of around 15,000 sq ft on the capital's main shopping streets are nearly impossible to come by, and as Zara's requirements are for a particularly spacious premises, it will almost certainly have to look at more peripheral streets.

The stylish, high-fashion chain usually favours premium locations. There are Zara outlets in 28 countries including shops on 5th Avenue in New York, the Champs Elysees in Paris and Regent Street in London.

The Zara chain began 25 years ago and is now part of the family-owned Inditex Group, which has its headquarters in La Coruna in Spain. The group is made up of five different retail chains, Pull and Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bersihka and Stradivarius as well as Zara.

These retail brands, particularly the Zara name, are well known, particularly in mainland Europe but also in South America.

This year the company, which is going through a major phase of expansion, has earmarked several new countries for 150 new shops. Holland, Denmark, Austria and Luxembourg were targeted for the group's expansion in 2000.

In all cases, the company's strategy is not to enter a particular market unless a high-profile location can be secured. The same is likely to be the case in Dublin.

There are now over 1,000 shops in the Inditex group and the 1,001st store was opened in October in Oxford Street. This store, the seventh of the Zara chain in the UK, has more than 118,000 sq ft of retail space.

All the activities in the Inditex group are centred on the distribution of fashionwear for men, women and children and the group employs more than 200 designers.

The introduction of a new European label into the UK-dominated Dublin fashion scene will be welcomed in terms of the new choice it will give to trend conscious consumers.

Mango, the most recent Spanish entrant on to the Irish scene, has proved to be successful at offering this season's fashions at highly competitive prices. Starting with a concession in Arnotts two years ago, there is now a Mango shop in the Liffey Valley Centre.