Lovelyish

There’s a Zara Men in Galleria Dallas at least.. and their jackets do look damn good. Whatever is making them shy away from expanding is a real a shame. Not unreasonable, but it still sucks.

I went into Zara once and their prices are pretty high and their selection is small. I usually sift through at least 50+ articles of clothing before choosing a handful to try on. I didn’t really see anything that I liked there. maybe they’ll have some styles that I like when they replenish their merchandise to show other new styles. I’m thin and the clothes fit me, but some of their basic items are pricey. they are like the mexican urban outfitters. maybe I’ll check out their sales if they have any.

Zara’s clothes are too expensive, too small, & not worth the fuss to care why they don’t care about us.

No Zara is fucking expensive and people can’t afford it..so they can’t afford to open business.

I’m both a US and EU citizen, so I’ve been familiar with Zara since before its emergence in the US market. Actually, I was actually reached out by Zara’s PR agency months before their eCommerce launch and offered $150 to spend on their online store (alongside a cryptic request to promote the launch). I ordered a headband, a pair of high wasted jeans, chinos, and a simple blouse. I ordered the chinos in the smallest size possible and they were still too big on me (and I am not that terribly tiny). So, I returned them and then was told I couldn’t get anything else because the offer was a “one time credit,” (obviously the customer service representative knew a lot about corporate operations and the relationship with the PR agency). The jeans and headband were fine, but I literally had to re-sew each button (there were about ten) back onto the blouse after two washes. Woof. Not happy.
I keep giving Zara another chance, both in the US and in Europe. I bought an awesome lightweight down jacket… The zipper keeps breaking. My asymmetrical pleated skirt and suede pumps I bought this past summer are fine (for now). With my experience, Zara’s quality is way too low relative to its pricing. And, unless you’re talking about the TRF line (which is usually atrocious quality), the typical prices at Zara are much higher than Gap’s.

When I originally read that quote by Nueno in the NYT article, I was pissed. There is nothing wrong with Gap. Walmart? Okay, maybe. But TJ Maxx? Does he know that TJ Maxx in urban and suburban areas, including the midwest (hi I’m from Chicago) carries the brands that Zara knocks off? Yes, Robert Rodriguez, Jason Wu, Alice + Olivia, Alexander Wang, Marc Jacobs… there’s even Christian Louboutins at my local TJ Maxx’s. I seriously took offense to that comment and I am waiting for TJX’s public relations department to respond. 

Anyway, because Zara is a European brand, Americans tend to flock to it in search of “fashionable” and “unique” items. I think they’re smart in not expanding. My theory is that if Zara was as abundant as Forever21, people would see it as more of a commodity, purchase more, then slowly realize that the quality sucks, and eventually sales would begin slipping. 

plus the markup is a lot higher in other countries.

actually, i think it’s not just that the target demographic is elsewhere (on the coasts), it’s that that target demographic in america expects uniform sizing. zara has just about the most frustrating sizing imaginable. two pairs of the same pants in the same size will fit entirely differently. perhaps its our demand for more quality for the price that causes sales to be dismal. either way, i am both frustrated by their smallest size in pants falling off my hips and their smallest size in dresses not fitting over them…

or perhaps the US is currently in a recession and its consumer confidence is not exactly at a high

@P0RCELA1N_D0LL@xanga - Zara’s strategy is to only have the latest (so only a few) styles+color combinations out at a time, and to never mark them down for sale, so that (returning) customers will be inclined to buy immediately instead of waiting for a sale, because Zara doesn’t restock.  Once an item is sold, that’s it, until that trend comes back around in later seasons.

Also, good article

@atl_luv@xanga - i see. that’s what high end designers do; have a few items of limited edition clothing hanging on like two racks and the entire store looks rather empty with like one or two store associates standing around looking at each other waiting for people to stampede in lol or window shop as they walk by scared of the haunted house looking store. if that’s what their customers like, then so be it.

hmm from the above comments I don’t think Zara will be missed by the majority of Americans. I’d never heard of them before this article and now that I have I know to avoid them and never even recommend it to my friends who can fit in their clothes. The don’t do sales? There sizes aren’t uniform and don’t even fit slim people appropriately?  Too rich and too unpredictable for my blood. Americans are fatter on average than other countries, and yes we are surely struggling financially. So I think it’s a smart business decision for them, they are going where they think business will be more profitable and hey that’s just business. There really is no point in trying to make clothes that were fashioned for a slim person, in larger sizes because it probably wouldn’t look right.If you’re a fashion forward West coaster or East coaster I’m sure there are ways (internet shopping, now that its offered by Zara) to get the clothes if you really want them. 

Ummmmmm, Zara is not expensive at all, at least in Spain (and rest of Europe)…….Everyone knows that high quality is not why they are known for……….Clothes last one season, that’a all!!! They are made for that (three times on the whashing machine, and it is finished, everybody knows that in Europe, it is fine for working clothes and party dresses, but do not look for something “good”…….). US market is different from Europe’s. Inditex (the global bussines group for Zara, Pull & Bear, Bhreska, Massimo Dutti…..) tried to enter on american market, but it was too expensive for them (for several reasons such as sizes, shops, quality expected by american customers and so on……). They will keep their shops, but the focus now is Asia, not only for Inditex, but for a lot of other companies (from clothes to food, from banking to oil….). Do not expect too much from Zara. Inditex has other shops more expensives and with better quality clothes,  as Massimo Dutti………..

No, Zara is overpriced, that’s why it’s not expanding.

I’m so confused why people seem to believe stores of that price range don’t expand. If that were true, White House Black Market, Coach, Banana Republic, J. Crew and dozens of others wouldn’t exist.

@JoeytheGenie@xanga - BINGO!! As a Canadian, I know this for a fact. It is precisely why American companies like Wal-Mart, Target, TJ Maxxs etc. are heading across the border into Canada. Our economy is far superior. Wal-Mart, according to a cousin of mine, is doing its most-profitable business IN CANADA throughout its worldwide operations. Zara is smart enough to know the USA is a black hole for profitability with its mess of an economy. 

@samescobar - Sweetie, that’s because they are AMERICAN. Duh?

@CanuckFascist@xanga - I’m Canadian too. But honestly, Canada’s economy may be okay now but I’m really worried. The fiscal cliff will impact us greatly. One of the things as to why the Canadian economy is okay is that the banks were/are doing well due to the low interest rate and stimulus spending but as the Harper government pulls that back we’re heading for trouble  (interest rates will have to rise as the Canadian personal debt levels are already so high) especially since some of the Big 6 are so invested in America. 

@JoeytheGenie@xanga - Our stimulus spending was the lowest of all the G20 nations. What are you talking about? Our banks survived not because of low-interest rates. The American banks had that too. We survived due to our tight regulations.
You want Harper to keep spending? Of course he is reigning in our spending. We have a debt to pay off and his spending cuts are necessary. You think money grows on trees? You DO realise if we don’t pay our debts, we lose our prized AAA credit rating, which allows us to pay lower interest rates, thus saving us more money, yes? That commie party, the NDP, nearly destroyed Ontario when they ruled it. The smartest thing we ever did was toss them out of office during the next elections. The Conservatives were forced to clean up their mess with tax cuts, which drove people like you insane. The result? Our credit rating went from B to AAA.

I like Zara, a lot, but it’s too expensive.  And while their clothes run a tiny bit smaller than American sizes, they’re not terrible.  European sizes are two sizes bigger than the US, but with Zara I only have to go up one size, if at all.  H&M is the one that is ridiculous with their sizing.  Anyway, there’s one in the Dallas Galleria (like first commenter said) & one in the Houston Galleria (I’ve never been, though, because the Galleria is a nightmare), but I’m not impressed with Dallas’… I like the one in NYC, but that’s a little unfair for me to say ’cause it is NYC.

Long story short, I think the price & the sizing is the downfall of Zara.

@Xx_SCRiBBLY@xanga - …just curious, what do you think is wrong with h&m’s sizing?

so what they’re trying to say is we’re fat and don’t dress nice… eff you zara, keep your overpriced clothes we don’t need them!