“French ZARA” is coming to Greece – “Empire” with a store in Thessaloniki

At an advanced stage, and according to confirmed information, discussions are taking place about the so-called French “ZARA” operation in Greece. The Kiabi chain, a member of the Molly family's business “empire”, has in recent months been looking for places to house its first stores, as well as distribution partnerships.

It is said to be in talks with at least two well-known companies that operate malls and theme parks, and as sources familiar with the negotiations said, it is only a matter of time before they shake hands.

Founded in 1978 by Sir Patrick Mollier in northern France, Kiabi pioneered so-called “fast” and cheap fashion, which would eventually develop into a mass market in the following decades. The company's sales reached 2.2 billion euros last year. It has 606 physical points of sale, most of them in France, as well as a strong online channel that generates about 15% to 20% of revenue.

In fact, in addition to stores, stores within stores have recently begun operating within Decathlon stores, also owned by Mollier, in Belgium, Italy and France. It also has 26 million customers in 26 different countries, and in recent years it has tried to expand its presence abroad. It has only recently entered the markets of Uruguay, South Caledonia and Egypt.

The company's goal, its management says, is to become “a beloved, responsible clothing brand that is accessible to families around the world.” In its stores you will find women's, men's and children's clothing, as well as white goods, storage items and small furniture. The stores are developed with an average sales area of ​​1,000 to 2,000 square metres.

Kiabi belongs to the business “empire” of the Mulliez family, whose “umbrella” is the holding company Association Familiale Mulliez. Below them are dozens of business entities, some of which are very well known, operate independently, are managed or supervised by different family members, but have a common major shareholder! The “patriarch” of the family is Mr. Gérard Mollier. The 92-year-old businessman's personal wealth is currently estimated at 26 billion euros.

investment

This will be the fourth company from the family to operate in Greece, and the third in the retail sector. The initial penetration of the family business into our country was through Groupe Adeo, which controls the Leroy Merlin chain. The first store in the AIA commercial park, “El. Venizelos”, opened its doors in March 2007, and since then six other stores have followed. Five of them operate in Attica, one in Thessaloniki and one in Larissa.

The second investment was made as a reaction, when the family acquired through the Createv investment vehicle in 2011 the shareholding and management control of Voltalia, a company working in the field of renewable energy sources that already has a subsidiary in our country. The third Mollyite company to enter Greece was the sportswear chain Decathlon, which has more than 1,500 stores in 49 countries. In 2018, the first store was opened in Greece, in the Mare West shopping center. Since then, two more centers will be opened, in the Smart Park Shopping Village in Spata and in the River West Open Air Shopping Complex in Kifissos.

Entry of foreign chains

Kiabi's imminent entry into the Greek market comes at a time when foreign chains, especially from Eastern Europe, are expanding aggressively in Greece. Only last week, it became known that the Polish company Sinsay, a subsidiary of LLP Group, agreed with Trade Estates to establish stores in Smart Park and in new retail complexes in Patras and Heraklion, while its plan for this year is to put 20 new stores into operation, increasing its network To 26 by the end of the year.

The other Polish chain, Pepco, has already reached 26 stores, aiming to double it by the end of 2025 (!), while reliable information indicates that German clothing chains are also seriously investigating the Greek market, again in the category of budget stores. Clothes and shoes..

Source: newmoney.gr

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