Zara products selling in Korea were the most expensive of all countries, at prices that were 96 percent higher than in Spain. (image: Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Jun. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — Prices at SPA brand Zara’s Korean stores are higher than anywhere else in the world.
According to Spanish press El Confidencial on June 9, Morgan Stanley employed analytics company AlphaWise to conduct market research on Zara.
The research firm discovered that products selling in Korea were twice as expensive as products in Spain, based on an analysis of the prices of 7,000 products from 14 international Zara online shopping malls.
In India and Japan, prices were 53 percent and 62 percent higher than in Spain, while products selling in the U.S.A were 92 percent more expensive.
Zara products selling in Korea were the most expensive of all countries, at prices that were 96 percent higher than in Spain.
Zara Retail Korea, which operates Zara’s business in Korea since 2007, runs 43 stores in the country.
Zara’s parent company Inditex and Lotte Shopping hold 80 percent and 20 percent stakes in Zara Retail Korea respectively.
Although the company’s annual sales growth rates were over 20 percent until 2012, growth dropped to 11.5 percent in 2013 and 4.6 percent in 2014.
Last year, the company also saw an operating loss of 8 billion won (US$ 7.14 million).
Clothing industry representatives said that Zara does not have a competitive price advantage, nor does its range of items compare favorably to H&M, Uniqlo and many other domestic SPA brands such as 8 Seconds, Spao and Top Ten.
By Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
