The biggest Zara store in the world opens in Spain

The flagship of the Inditex group, the Zara fashion chain, opened the doors to a new store last Friday in the heart of Madrid. But it was an opening unlike any other. It is one of the largest brand stores in the world with 7,700 square metres distributed over four floors.

Located in the renovated Edificio España in Madrid, the store will be the complete integration of the brand between physical and online commerce. The establishment has self-collection areas, the possibility of returning garments purchased online and changing rooms that can be booked from a mobile phone.

Customers will still be able to have a "totally analogue" store experience if they wish, confirm Inditex sources, but the company’s goal is for the shopping experience to be increasingly digital.

It is one of the biggest openings by the group this year, although other important Zara stores are also planned in Doha in Qatar, Porto in Portugal and Tokyo in Japan.

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These openings are part of Inditex's new strategy of having larger and more technology-driven establishments, a strategy that has led them to close small stores in several cities while opening others where they relocate their employees.

In one of his last speeches before leaving as president of the group, Pablo Isla pointed out that the Zara store in Madrid would become a "world reference in the concept of integration between the physical store and the online channel." He said that, in his opinion, technological tools would make it possible to provide the best quality of service in an environment with "maximum sustainability".